Introducing The Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition

Just like the rest of the planet over the past two years, I’ve become enamoured with the world of F1. I love it.

The engineering, cars and the drama. Even my wife, who couldn’t care less about sport has taken an interest, or at least her eyes don’t glaze over when I talk to her about it.

The question, however, is which team do I devote myself to? I cant be one of those supporters that jumps around based on who’s on top or has the best chance to win. I know it’s hard to tell but I still have a little self-respect left, I swear.

Do I go all in on Ferrari and drink the Hamilton Kool-Aid? Maybe. Or do I go pink with Alpine and Moser? As an Australian, Red Bull is out of the question (Poor Daniel Ricciardo) and orange clashes with my eyes, so Mclaren’s out. It’s a difficult decision, but there's one team that has always pulled me in, tickled my fancy if you will. Not because of their drivers or their racing history, but because their road cars are so bloody beautiful. Achingly beautiful in fact.

I am of course talking about Aston Martin.

The British brand has long been my favourite road car maker and I’ve lusted after a Vanquish ever since Mr Bond drove one in Pierce Brosnan’s Die Another Day. You know, the one where he drives up an ice wall? Iconic.

Although it seems like a cop-out to make a decision based on the brand's road cars, I’m still too much of an F1 novice to make a decision any other way. It doesn’t hurt that Aston’s watch partner is Girard-Perregaux either, I don’t know if there’s a better pairing in F1. Beauty recognises Beauty.

The Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition

Continuing its partnership with Aston Martin Aramco, Girard-Perregaux has launched its latest collaboration piece, The Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition. The watch follows on from the handsome green dial Laureato Chronograph released a few weeks ago and brings a much more technical flavour to the table, one that fits well with the partnership's performance inspirations. Just like the ARM25, Aston’s new F1 Car, the Laureato Absolute takes a familiar design and turns it up to 11.

What Is A Laureato Anyway?

Before we dive into the Absolute, we need some context. In the ’70s, when the steel-integrated royal family was being born, Girard-Perregaux was the only brand to create their watch completely in-house. The Laureato was a quartz watch, sure, but a completely bespoke quartz movement in the 70s is extremely impressive.

As for the name, ‘The Laureato’ or 'Graduate' in English, was suggested by an Italian watch distributor. In part to ride on the coat tails of the 1967 Dustan Hoffman film, The Graduate. Incredible movie. It went on to become the go-to watch to gift students finishing their studies in Italy. Lucky kids.Following on from the original, there have been many iterations of the Laureato, but none have taken the concept as far as the absolute. It’s GP's Royal Oak Offshore, and in my opinion, is miles more elegant than that watch. Sorry Emmanuel Gueit.

Keeping the history of the Laureato in mind, new drivers getting one when they graduate from F2 to Aston Martin F1 is a nice little connection to its Italian past. Bellissimo!

High Tech Materials

Grade 5 titanium keeps the mass down which, to be honest sounds redundant on a watch with a case as large as 44mm. In the spirit of F1 however, performance is a priority and the low weight and relatively small dial-to-case ratio make this watch a lot more wearable than the dimensions suggest. I remember trying the standard model on and was shocked at how comfortable it was.

The sandblasted finish looks great but I do miss the beautiful, all-over polish of the standard Laureato. Fun fact, the watchmakers called the original watch ‘the polisher's nightmare’ because of how intricate and complex the polishing procedure was.

Each piece is numbered out of 88 and a crisp engraving of the Aston Martin wings adorns the case back. Nice and subtle.

The strap is an FKM ‘fabric-feel’ unit and comes with a folding clasp that uses GP’s very smart on-the-fly micro-adjustment system.  An essential for a hard-working pit crew I’m sure.

Aston Martin Racing Green

In what I assume is a variation of British Racing Green, the dial has a tone that mimics the strap, crown tube and AMR25 livery. A slightly grained texture pops with acid-green accents on the hands and date window. Speaking of the hands, they're semi-skeletonised and are said to mimic the design of the icon Aston Martin grille. I say 'said to' because I’m not seeing it. That’s no reflection on the watch, by the way, the hands look great, it’s more so a reflection of my own intelligence…

Grille-shaped hands or not, I think the dial strikes a good balance between a highly technical and classic Girard-Perregaux aesthetic.

A Solid Movement In Need Of An Update

Let me preface this by saying that Girard-Perregaux makes incredible movements. The Bridges collection in particular is mind-blowing. The problem I have however is that the Calibre GPO3300-1060 powering the Laureato is in dire need of an update. Introduced in the early 2000s it’s a movement that just isn’t up to scratch aesthetically or functionally. Especially for a performance-focused watch like the Absolute. A 46-hour power reserve just isn’t enough in 2025.

Now, I’ll forgive the aesthetic challenges this movement faces because you can’t actually see it, thank god, and there is the argument that power reserve doesn’t matter on an automatic watch, so maybe my gripes are unfounded. But either way, it’s an older movement that should, and probably will be replaced sooner rather than later. Consider that a 2026 prediction.

Collaboration watches like this aren’t easy to pull off. They either lean too far on the collaborator and lose their identity, or they do a half-baked job that lacks commitment. The Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition does neither, striking a balance between racing novelty and the classic haute horology that Girard-Perregaux is known for. It’s a watch that can be worn by Aston Martin superfans and the general public alike. As a limited edition of 88, there’s minimal risk of this watch having to appeal to the general buyer, there’s more than enough Aston Marten F1 fans to snap these up, but it is good to know that you can still wear it and not feel like a dork when the checkered flag flies.

No offence dorks.

Cya in the next one.

‍

‍