Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff was seen wearing two IWC watches on different wrists during qualifying at Albert Park in Melbourne. He explained one shows European time and the other local time, despite neither having a second time zone function. This occurred after Mercedes secured the front row with George Russell on pole and Kimi Antonelli in second.
During qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team principal, drew attention for sporting two IWC watches simultaneously. On his left wrist was the George Russell Pilot’s Watch edition, a black ceramic model in Russell’s signature blue colourway, limited to 1,063 pieces. The right wrist featured Wolff’s personal Big Pilot’s Watch Shock Absorber XPL, a 44mm Ceratanium piece limited to 100 units, both aligned with Mercedes team colours.
When questioned by a team member about the unusual setup, Wolff responded casually: “First one, it’s the George watch and it’s European time,” gesturing to his left wrist. “And that one is local time, you see,” he added, pointing to the right. However, neither watch includes GMT or dual time complications; they are standard time-and-date models.
The Shock Absorber XPL, retailing at USD $102,000, incorporates IWC’s SPRIN-g PROTECT system with a bulk metallic glass spring to withstand forces over 30,000g. The George Russell edition is more affordable, with the chronograph at USD $12,900 (AU$19,000) and the automatic at USD $8,900 (AU$14,000). Together, the watches exceed USD $110,000 in value.
This display followed Mercedes' strong performance, locking out the front row by eight tenths of a second ahead of competitors. IWC, the team's watch sponsor, has produced these limited editions tied to Wolff and Russell.
