• The ultimate tourbillon split-seconds chronograph
  
• Inspired by Ferrari’s legacy
  
• Limited to 150 watches: 75 in microblasted titanium, 75 in Carbon TPT^®

Since 2021, the collaboration between Richard Mille and Ferrari has united two engineering powerhouses, each driven by the unwavering pursuit of technical innovation, landmark design and peerless performance.

In 2022, this alliance delivered its first masterpiece, the RM UP-01 Ultraflat Ferrari – a watch just 1,75 mm thick, stunned industry observers and fans from both brands.

Now, the second creation from this partnership reinvents Richard Mille’s most complex high-complication format, the tourbillon split-second chronograph, through a dynamic creative exchange between Maranello and Les Breuleux to create the RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari.

The RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari is limited to 75 pieces in microblasted and polished grade 5 titanium with a Carbon TPT^® caseband; and 75 in Carbon TPT^®, a lightweight and durable thin-ply composite used exclusively for Richard Mille.

“We have two cases to express two distinct personalities: a ‘gentleman driver’ ethos for the titanium case, and a more high-octane attitude in the carbon version,” says Julien Boillat, Richard Mille’s casing technical director.

Ferrari’s Centro Stile played an instrumental role in designing various key elements of the watch from the general aesthetic to the details such as the crown, the hands, the strap featuring the pattern of the Purosangue seats, all representative of their stylistic influence. The space deliberately left open during the development of the movement is filled with a titanium plate laser-engraved with the Prancing Horse logo whose shape is inspired by the rear wing of the 499P. Microblasted and satin-finished with polished bevels, it demonstrates the brand’s level of expertise apparent throughout the calibre.

Thanks to the deep creative and technical exchange between Richard Mille and Ferrari, the RM 43-01 weaves together a subtle but dynamic array of visual and technical elements that take their cue from the automotive brand’s unparalleled technological universe.

“A collaboration like this is as much predicated on similarities in values as it is on the visual similarities between a Ferrari engine or a component and the elements used in a watch,” Flavio Manzoni, Ferrari Chief Design Officer says. “In terms of performance, anything that has a technical purpose can also be beautiful. The concept of functional beauty is something that we really love.”

A key emphasis was placed on enhancing the three-dimensional effect of the movement design, using a variety of surface treatments, finishes and contrasting details inspired by the complex geometries of Ferrari engine blocks and crankcases.

The metallic finish of the baseplate echoes the industrial precision of sandcast engine components, while microblasted bridges recall the toughened matt surface of Ferrari engine covers. Angular structures, adorned with raised ridges, contrasting tonalities and tiny X-shaped supports, interspersed with golden hexagonal socket-head screws are a direct nod to the patterns, parts and extruded details found on Ferrari engine blocks and crankcases.

On the front, the clutch wheel of a V8 engine informs the design of the barrel jewel setting, while dynamic, angular exterior details of cars like the 488 challenge Evo, the Daytona SP3 and the SF90 Stradale inform elements of the case styling, pushers and indexes. As with the tachometer that dominates a modern Ferrari dashboard, the skeletonized 30-minute totaliser stands out in the dial, the dramatic, three dimensional lynchpin of the chassis layout.

Julien Boillat comments, “The team from Ferrari worked very closely with our experts for two years on this new project. When we design a watch, we find new ways to increase the performance and to discover new materials that improve durability yet further. I have to say, it was incredibly stimulating to have Ferrari as our co-pilots on this adventure.”

For both Richard Mille and Ferrari, the tourbillon split-seconds chronograph was seen as the essential foundation for a new timepiece. It is rooted in the seamless fusion of two of watchmaking’s most complex and storied high complications: the whirling marvel of the tourbillon and the pinnacle manifestation of the chronograph with its dual seconds hands for recording split times, dazzling movement architecture and deep automotive heritage.

The RM43-01 calibre was engineered from the ground up over a three-year development process. Exceptionally lightweight and strong, its intricate architecture rests on a highly skeletonised grade 5 titanium baseplate and its engine supported by bridges produced from both titanium and Carbon TPT^®. Model of efficiency, it delivers 70 hours of power reserve indicated at 2 o’clock on a 5N PVD titanium dial. The quality of this energy is also visible through a second dial via the torque indicator. The last indicator for the selected function completes this dashboard.

The off-centre tourbillon escapement with a titanium carriage brings notable kineticism to the watch, enhanced by an innovative active second’s display that uses five radial blades read against a 12-second index.

Designed in collaboration with Richard Mille’s long-time partner Audemars Piguet Le Locle (APLL), the RM43-01 calibre brings multiple refinements to the split-second’s mechanism. Through intensive R&D and computer simulations, a new generation of components has been developed to optimise power consumption whilst delivering more consistent torque levels throughout the power reserve.

“Our work as movement manufacturers is becoming increasingly scientific which is helping us create components that are even more durable whilst delivering even better performance”, explains Salvador Arbona, Richard Mille’s movement technical director.

From micro-components to material selection every element of the RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari was considered through the lens of performance as with any Ferrari automobile. Inevitably, every single design decision can impact the integrity and technical capability of a given part. Extensive shock testing, simulations and deep research ensured that every part met Richard Mille’s uncompromising standards.

The RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari is a true homage to Ferrari’s legacy, blending iconic design and unparalleled performance. It represents the pinnacle of horological and automotive synergy—where aesthetics meet function and passion drives innovation. Mastery is not achieved by chance—it is the result of relentless precision, innovation, and an uncompromising pursuit of precision. Richard Mille and Ferrari embody this philosophy, pushing the boundaries of engineering and aesthetics to redefine performance, both on the track and on the wrist. From cutting-edge materials to extreme mechanical efficiency, every creation is a testament to mastery and vision.

The latest collaboration, the RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari, represents the pinnacle of horological and automotive synergy—where aesthetic meets function, and passion drives innovation. This watch is the embodiment of ‘The Essence of Performance’.

From Les Breuleux in the Swiss Jura to Maranello is a distance of around 600km. But when the experts at Richard Mille’s headquarters began their dialogue with the engineers at the world-famous Ferrari HQ in Emilia Romagna, they found themselves as perfectly aligned as one of their magnificent chronographs. Time and space compressed to almost nothing in the joint pursuit of engineering innovation, technical excellence and a peerless aesthetic.

The two companies embarked on a multi-year partnership in 2021, a collaboration that encompasses Formula One, the World Endurance Championship (WEC), GT racing and e-sport.

The first fruits of their intensive labours was the RM UP-01 Ferrari, a piece of startling impact primarily because of its ultra-flat dimensions – a mere 1.75 millimetres thick. Within that sits a movement that’s slimmer still, just 1.18mm. That’s thinner than a compact disc.

Now comes the RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari, the product of a deepening relationship between two great names, a mechanical timepiece that is so much more than the sum of its meticulously engineered parts as to be almost transcendent.

The starting point for a new watch as for a new car is as simple as it is daunting. It’s also one that will be familiar to creatives the world over: a clean sheet of paper.

This particular white space sits on Julien Boillat’s and Salvador Arbona’s (Movement Technical Director) desk, and even after 17 years at the company, the challenge for them and their team is profound.

The ideas start with a different sort of movement, that of pen across paper. Thoughts on how the movement, its general aesthetic, its functions and the case geometry on this new Ferrari watch might look are all sketched out.

Reassuringly, genuine artistry is at the heart of the project. Some basic parameters were established during trips between the two companies. The push and pull of highly gifted engineers and creatives in complementary disciplines is integral to the process.

Ferrari has been manufacturing automobiles since 1947. It has a reputation for inspirational design and ground-breaking technical achievement. It has also evolved an understanding of its customers that is the envy of the car industry.

Ferrari has been manufacturing automobiles since 1947. It has a reputation for inspirational design and ground-breaking technical achievement. It has also evolved an understanding of its customers that is the envy of the car industry. Richard Mille has been in business for a third of that time but has vaulted to the pinnacle of haute horologie by espousing a comparable set of values. The question is, what sort of challenges do their respective artisans, designers and engineers face when setting out on a journey like this together?

“We try to avoid formal references when we design something outside the automotive environment,” Flavio Manzoni, Ferrari Chief Design Officer explains. “We won’t take a particular element of our design and simply foist it onto the project in question. We try to work on the values that we find in common with our partners, developing those while adding our design language.”

The meaning of the work that Richard Mille and Ferrari are conducting together is bound up in an exploration of the potential of the mechanics and materials in watches and cars. Ferrari isn’t really concerned with mobility and a Richard Mille watch is obviously much more than a timepiece. There is more at stake here.

Richard Mille understands this implicitly. It represents that sacred space in which technicity and aesthetics somehow manage to co-exist without compromising one another. Design codes are subsumed within the sort of materials science that finds more regular expression in industries such as aerospace, aeronautics, surgery and even space travel. These include Carbon TPT^®, graphene, ALUSiC^® and Grade 5 titanium, cutting edge materials that completely redefine the territory.

Ferrari knows about this stuff, too, and its core business – high performance cars – provides powerful fuel for the Richard Mille team. Take, for example, the company’s most famous engine, the V12. Since day one, when Enzo Ferrari hired his old friend Gioachino Colombo to envisage his long dreamt-of project, Ferrari’s signature power unit has involved 12 cylinders. It’s a configuration that delivers huge horsepower but also results in a naturally generated mechanical harmony. Engineers and musicologists will confirm that six and twelve cylinders simply sound better.

Nor can anything beat 12 cylinders in terms of visual impact. Ferrari is unique in having its own foundry, a building that remains special even within the ever-expanding Maranello technical campus. Richard Mille and Ferrari both manufacture movements; the differences lie in the scale of the components each is dealing with.

In seeking inspiration for the new watch, the architecture of the latest Ferrari V12 took centre stage on Salvador Arbona and his team’s mood boards – the block, the crankshaft, the intricacies of the transmission, the forms of the suspension and exhaust. These all possess sculptural qualities in their own right, as you would expect of cars as artistic as these.

Here’s how Ferrari creates one of its V12s. Specially sourced aluminium ingots are melted at 750° C in a furnace; the resulting liquid is then used for the cylinder block, crankcase, cylinder heads, and the valve casings. Rather than casting a solid block of aluminium and boring out the appropriate pathways, sand and resin cores are placed into the die casting machinery. These are then removed to leave perfectly designed channels.

Manufacturing Ferraris involves a high degree of hand craftsmanship but there are some examples of automation. For example, you’ll find a pair of robots called Romeo and Juliet in the foundry, whose job is to fuse the engine’s valve seats. Romeo takes a cylinder head and warms it with compressed air; Juliet takes an aluminium ring and dips it into liquid nitrogen, where it cools in a temperature of -196° C to a width of between 40 and 60 microns (a micron being one-millionth of a metre). After which the two parts are joined together. This is known as the ‘thermal interfacing process’. Romeo and Juliet are tasked with it because the temperatures involved are so extreme that no human would be able to do it. Shakespeare would no doubt have approved.

The crankshaft is similarly miraculous. A heat-treating process called nitriding forces atomic nitrogen into the aluminium to create a case-hardened surface, while the engine’s valves and the valve seats are worked on manually. It can take up to 25 days to manufacture the crankshaft in a Ferrari V12. The final engine assembly, during which all the individual sections are united, is done over six hours by one highly trained individual.

For the new RM 43-01, Arbona and his team – consisting of 40 people – started with the highest performance calibre, but totally redesigned it so that the movement became specific for this watch. “We’re very automotive based as a brand, it’s one of the passions of Richard Mille himself,” he explains. “The construction of the engines and the castings themselves were an inspiration, the grooves and the extrusions. That’s what we strived to achieve in terms of the detailing in the movement and the baseplate.”

Open the engine cover on an Enzo, LaFerrari or the latest F80 and you’re transported into a different world. The technical aspects are all showcased – the plenum, intake manifold, cylinder head and combustion chamber – and they all have a parallel in the inner world of a Richard Mille watch. Except, of course, that the inner world is also the outer one.

Says Arbona, “We also looked closely at the colours, materials and fabrics used by Ferrari [CMF, in automotive industry parlance]. We were interested in the materials and finishing that would deliver a 3D aspect in the movement. The team experimented with surface treatments, machining, and polishing – what we call the anglage. We played with the finish underneath with a metallic effect above. Ferrari was very open to us taking inspiration from the mechanical engineering as well as the pure aesthetics of the car.”

A deputation from Richard Mille regularly visited Maranello, with senior figures from Ferrari’s Centro Stile making the journey to Richard Mille in Switzerland and Paris. “We quickly got to learn how to challenge each other, and overcame whatever barrier there was between the different worlds,” Gianfranco Saracino, Partnership Projects Design Manager at Centro Stile Ferrari explains. “The approach needs to be gradual. We were looking for a balance between bringing something fresh from our world into Richard Mille’s.”

He continues, “We were so enthusiast and we came up with many proposals! They started to trust ideas that might have been considered audacious at the beginning, and vice versa in terms of our growing appreciation of the technical constraints. The most important thing is to respect the brand identity and values. It’s easy to arrive somewhere and just begin disrupting. It’s more difficult and rewarding to merge the two worlds.
This isn’t a case of Ferrari interpreting Richard Mille. No, it’s a common effort, driven by a determination to deliver something without any conflict. We wanted to find harmony, from a product, brand and design perspective. That requires some fine tuning on both sides.”

From Arbona’s, perspective, that meant giving clear instruction on the elements that could be changed – and the ones that were sacrosanct. Much of the RM 43-01 ’s movement fell into the latter category. “We always use the best materials, original, regardless of cost. Durability is a core value.”

F1 engines are about performance, of course, but also efficiency. It’s all a matter of analysis, anticipation, and experience. “There are some materials that are very dear to us, such as titanium and Carbon TPT^®. Customers can choose between these two materials for the case. The aesthetics actually come into the equation last, but obviously we must ensure that it all makes sense and looks good to the eye.”

Something similar occurs in Maranello. Ferrari’s Centro Stile is part of an unprecedented narrative in the automotive industry. In its earliest days, Ferrari tapped into Italy’s vibrant carrozzerie – coachbuilding – expertise when it came to designing the bodies for its cars. Companies such as Boano, Ghia, Touring and Vignale all contributed to the Ferrari story. In 1952, Enzo Ferrari arranged to meet Battista ‘Pinin’ Farina midway between his home in Modena and Farina’s HQ near Turin (each man was too proud to go to the other’s base). From then until the creation of the Centro Stile in 2010, almost every Ferrari was designed by Pininfarina. This is a back catalogue that contains many of the most beautiful cars ever made.

Centro Stile thus has a lot to live up to, but under Ferrari’s Chief Design Officer, Flavio Manzoni, has maintained an impressively forward-thinking philosophy. It’s an approach that is applied to every aspect of its business. Ferrari’s design team has also become very adept at reconciling the rigorous demands of aerodynamics with the more subjective matter of aesthetics. Form invariably follows function, but there is always visual drama and beauty, too.

“We always take care of any visible part of the car,” says Flavio Manzoni. “Although we don’t design every technical element, there is a natural instinct to look for an aesthetic in everything Ferrari does. A V12 engine has a naturally elegant and fascinating structure, which makes it more appreciable in an aesthetic sense than a simpler engine. There is a common understanding enhanced by the mutual respect and cooperation between Design and Technical Department.”

Richard Mille recognises this ethos. The new RM 43-01 takes the codes of the company’s design – including the shape of the bridge and the finishing – so that it’s instantly recognisable as one of its creations. But on this watch Arbona took some risks, notably in deciding to move the tourbillon cage. “This is something we don’t do very often because then you have to modify everything else in the movement. It’s a bespoke engine, really.”

Then there’s the matter of prototyping and testing that both concerned the two universes. In modern watchmaking, similar to auto racing, we leverage advanced computer simulations to fine-tune the design of our calibers and their skeletonisation, focusing on the balance between stiffness and flexibility, as well as the overall performance of each part. Every component is carefully skeletonised to ensure maximum structural rigidity while minimizing weight.

Selecting the right materials and geometry is critical, as is developing an overall architecture that is both coherent and efficient. From there, our research and development (R&D) takes performance to the next level.

The number of prototypes Arbona and the team create depends on the complexity of the movement. The RM 43-01, with its fiercely intricate movement composed of over 500 components, required 10, which is a considerable number for a watch limited to just 150 pieces. “During polishing and finishing we have to make sure we haven’t altered the properties of the materials,” Arbona says. “You can establish a certain amount on paper and by using algorithms, but some things only become apparent in reality.”

To ensure optimal performance and safety, Ferrari conducts thorough tests on new models. Initially, advanced 3D simulations are used to minimize real-world testing, saving time. Once the design is finalized, prototypes undergo road tests in real-world conditions on road and tracks to evaluate their behavior. Key factors like fuel consumption and safety are measured using modern technologies, including AI. Each development phase follows a rigorous methodology to meet safety and performance standards and offering the best driving experience.

Ultimately, this collaboration is one of equals, a tantalising unity between teams of people operating at the highest level. Artistry, aesthetics and technical accomplishment come together to create something truly magical. Needless to say, Centro Stile team has boundless admiration for Richard Mille’s technicians.

In 2001, it was the world of high-performance automotive engineering, and the exhilarating view into a racing car’s engine, that inspired the radical look and three-dimensional brilliance of the very first Richard Mille watch, the legendary RM 001. The high-tech mechanics, structural complexity, materials innovation, and sense of raw power translated into a dramatic new form of haute horlogerie: an iconic style that sparked a revolution in watch design and has continued to evolve in Richard Mille watches ever since.

With the RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari, that automotive identity takes centre stage once again, now brought to life through close collaboration with Richard Mille partner and the famous name in elite car-making and motorsports: the one and only Ferrari.

The RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari becomes the second Richard Mille watch to bear the imprint of Ferrari’s famed Prancing Horse in the fifth-year partnership, displayed on a suspended titanium plate at 7 o’clock; and like this latter, Centro Stile Ferrari played an instrumental role in designing various key elements of the watch from the general aesthetic to the smallest details.

In fact, amid the thrilling re-engineering of Richard Mille’s pioneering tourbillon split-seconds chronograph system – akin to a Formula 1 car debuting for the new race season – it is the rich universe of Ferrari engineering that serves as the leitmotif running throughout the RM 43-01’s design. Numerous echoes and references await discovery by the keen-eyed observer.

The RM 43-01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari appears in two versions, respectively drawing on materials which, for their extreme lightness and strength, are as iconic in the Ferrari road and race cars productions as they are in Richard Mille watchmaking.

The first is cased in Carbon TPT^® and microblasted grade 5 titanium bezels, with titanium dials sections in PVD red gold and function detailing in bright red. The other features a case made entirely from Carbon TPT^®, Richard Mille’s exclusive variety of high-performance, thin-ply carbon fibre, with dial elements in anthracite and yellow. Each is limited to 75 watches in total.

The watches are powered by the new RM43-01 calibre, the latest generation of Richard Mille’s celebrated manual winding movement, developed in partnership with Audemars Piguet Le Locle (APLL), combining a split-seconds chronograph and tourbillon escapement, as well as power reserve, torque and function indicators.

The RM43-01 calibre is built with an ultra-skeletonized grade 5 titanium baseplate, paired with bridges made from both grade 5 titanium and Carbon TPT^®, ensuring rigidity and enhanced vibration and shock resistance. This design allows the gear train to function smoothly and the offset tourbillon to endure extreme acceleration. It has undergone rigorous testing at Richard Mille to withstand shocks exceeding 5000 g’s.

This sensational platform has been entirely redesigned and transformed from the ground up. Richard Mille engineers optimized once again the split-seconds system further by refining the operation of the complication, which features two six-column wheels and a newly designed clamp with a lighter skeletonized structure. Additionally, a new engagement system aligns with the split-seconds column wheel, along with an enhanced locking mechanism for the rockers. Energy consumption is also reduced by minimizing arbor friction, which improves timekeeping precision and makes the RM 43-01 a model of efficiency and long-term reliability.

Indeed, developing the watch over three years has encompassed a total reinvention of this exceptionally complex super-mechanism. With this complex engine, Richard Mille has both refined the movement’s performance, while also establishing an intoxicating sense of Ferrari-inspired, 3D kineticism and technical performance.

Most obviously and most dramatically, it is the repositioning of the tourbillon escapement – adorned with a dynamic new design for the running-seconds indication – to the right of the dial, rather than at the traditional 6 o’clock position, that shifts the entire balance of the design away from the centre, creating a dramatic asymmetry at the heart of the watch.

Achieving this meant effectively swivelling the axis of the baseplate, and consequently remapping the much of the structure and configuration of the gear train and bridges of this exceptionally complicated movement.

“The work of modernising the overall lines of the watch while preserving its chronometric capabilities was critical,” says Salvador Arbona, technical director of Richard Mille. “The complexity of the skeletonisation, and the need for perfect integration of the dial, indications and minute counter within the movement – without affecting its performance or structural integrity – was a huge challenge.”

As you look deeper into the vigorous architecture of the watch, the subtle yet deliberate nots to Ferrari engineering emerge. An automotive watch to its very essence, it is the chronograph’s 30-minute counter that takes centre stage in the dial, much like the bold tachometer that dominates the dashboard of cars like the 812 Superfast. The counter is itself a work of complex skeletonization – and behind it, gears are visible with silhouettes echoing the jagged ‘carters of a Ferrari engine.

At the upper centre of the watch, the barrel jewel setting, encircled by a ring of tiny circular perforations, takes its form from the clutch wheel of a F154 V8 engine, which powers modern supercars like the SF90 Stradale.

On the reverse, X-shaped structures on the movement bridges recall the extruded lattice on Ferrari crankcases, used to provide additional strength and rigidity while offering a more aggressive and distinctive look to the movement.
Hexagonal socket-head screws mirror those securing Ferrari engine covers and stand out further thanks to their golden hues which extends to the 3N PVD arms of the all-important split-seconds clamp, the symbol of this watch’s high-performance capabilities.

Does that gold tonality evoke the famous gold wheel hubs of the legendary Ferrari P4 of the 1960s? Perhaps

It also another layer to the striking interplay of textures, materials, treatments and finishes that run throughout a movement that stands as a sculpted work of dynamic horological art, with further textures designed to evoke the surfaces and contrasts of Ferrari units like its engine covers and sandcast engine blocks.

Indeed, closer inspection still reveals the rich dimensionality and luxurious quality of Richard Mille’s in-house haute horlogerie hand-finishing. Hand-polished bevels, sapphire-microblasted milled sections, lapped and polished contact points and burnished pivots, only add to the depth and beauty of the skeletonization and structure.

On the exterior, the chronograph pushers, with their lozenge-like shape, directly reference the rear lights of the SF90 Stradale, another discovery waiting for the discerning eye.

In a first for Richard Mille, the reference number now appears on the movement itself, engraved on the reverse of the baseplate with stars on either side, mirroring the VIN marking on a Ferrari engine block. On the rear bezel, for the first time the historic ‘big F’ Ferrari logo appears on a Richard Mille watch. In Formula 1, teams look for marginal gains — a process of analysis, adjustment, redesign and re-engineering that brings small but constant improvements. Is there a parallel with watchmaking at Richard Mille?

Each part is precisely skeletonised to maximize rigidity while keeping weight to a minimum, using the best materials and calculations for the job. It’s a complex process, but these simulations allow us to anticipate mechanical constraints and fine-tune every detail during development. Plus, advancements in chemistry and materials research deepen our understanding of our components’ properties.

From there, we push R&D even further to fine-tune performance. For example, the tourbillon cage is made entirely of titanium for its strength and lightness, while the chronograph rocker is crafted from Carbon TPT^® to reduce inertia. Similarly, the rear bridge is also made of titanium, ensuring both high durability and minimal weight for optimal efficiency.

Digital simulations are major contributors to our improvement process. Actually, it was the RM 27-05 Tourbillon Rafael Nadal, presented in May 2024, that originally paved the way for this principle of seeking tiny gains through advanced simulations.

Digital simulations are major contributors to our improvement process. They allow us to model the behaviour of our movements virtually, anticipate mechanical constraints, and refine every detail of the design before physical manufacturing. What’s more, incorporating advancements in chemistry and R&D in material studies gives us an ever-deeper understanding of our components’ properties.

What does “performance” mean in the context of a watch like this?
For Richard Mille, performance means a movement that functions flawlessly in any conditions and withstands extreme shocks—pushing the limits of material resistance and horological innovation.

Creating a rigid calibre is relatively straightforward but achieving the same stiffness with extensive skeletonization while using unconventional materials is an entirely different challenge. Add to this some flexibility in the components to absorb shocks, and we have the equation of performance according to Richard Mille.

For the Carbon TPT^® version, we had to increase the stiffness of its baseplate. This version is slightly less skeletonised, as the total weight of the watch, which is less than that of the titanium version, exposes it to greater accelerations during the pendulum impact test.

Because of this we had to make strategic decisions that would ensure greater stiffness. The outcome is very much the fruit of a threefold technical process of analysis, simulation and interpretation.

What kinds of technical challenges and evolutions did this watch present? What were the most exciting milestones and decisions during its development?
Without a doubt, the skeletonisation. Modernizing the watch’s overall lines while preserving its chronometric performance was a crucial challenge.

For our second timepiece with Ferrari, we needed to deliver something truly special—there was immense anticipation. The goal was to create a watch that remained true to Richard Mille’s principles while allowing Ferrari to express its identity and engage deeply with watchmaking.

This project has been a key step in refining our collaboration, achieving a remarkable level of synergy for future endeavours.

Personally speaking, what do you like best about the way the RM 43-01 is designed?
Its aesthetic and technical clarity. You can instantly recognize it as a magnificent Richard Mille chronograph. The extended crystal opens up the case, giving it a distinctly airy feel. we have two interpretation of the watch thanks to their cases combination to reflect two distinct personalities: a refined, gentleman-driver spirit in the titanium case and a more aggressive, petrolhead attitude in the carbon version.

Do you have a favourite detail?
The minute counter – its transparency and layered design evoke a transmission system, seamlessly integrated into the heart of the movement. It perfectly conveys what this chronograph is all about. I also think my team did an outstanding job shaping the asymmetrical bridges, which add a unique energy to the aesthetic.

The tourbillon split-seconds chronograph movement has evolved hugely since it first appeared with the RM 008. How has it changed?
A Richard Mille split-seconds chronograph is an incredibly advanced movement – it’s really where all our expertise and our ambition to transcend conventions come together.

Since the RM 008, we’ve worked relentlessly to refine this movement. Through extensive analysis conducted jointly with APLL (Audemars Piguet Le Locle), we’ve achieved significant advancements, particularly in optimizing the split-seconds’ power consumption curve and spring. With each new iteration, split-seconds components become lighter, and the aesthetic design of levers and hammers is continuously refined.

A key innovation in our latest split-seconds chronographs eliminates the initial jump of the chronograph seconds hand while reducing the function’s energy consumption by nearly 50%. This breakthrough was made possible by developing a new generation of split-seconds components that reduce friction on the pivot axis – an improvement resulting from in-depth research into the operation of the split-seconds clamp. That all ensures more consistent torque throughout the entire power reserve.

So a Richard Mille movement design is never really ‘finished’ as such? You’re always looking for gains and improvements for the next version?
Calibres are constantly evolving, as are the tests they undergo. The synergy between digital simulation, real-world testing, and data analysis is key to the continuous advancement of our movements.

We gain valuable insights from every model we develop, whether through shock tests—like our in-house “Nadal” test—or aging tests that help us understand the stresses our components endure. In-depth analysis of the data gathered allows us to refine and optimize our products continuously.

But performance isn’t just about how a movement functions on the wrist. We also focus on assembly and disassembly, improving the logic and efficiency of the entire process. Our modular construction allows us to test each part separately, ensuring the reliability of each sub-assembly before final integration.

For example, we first validate the basic mechanics with the barrel and gear train, then assemble and verify the tourbillon cage. Once these steps are confirmed, we install the chronograph, conduct its checks, and finally integrate the split-seconds function for the final movement test. Careful attention to the assembly sequence is essential to ensuring the overall functionality and reliability of the movement.

The seconds display is highly unusual here. What was the thinking behind it?
The goal was to achieve total lightness while avoiding a conventional dial, a choice that allows for a perfect visual balance and echoes the power-reserve and torque indicators.

It is a very time-consuming component. We begin with machining and finishing the back of a round disk. Then, we perform laser cutting of the center of the five skeletons and a second-level ablation is carried out, including the geometry of the spline screw at the center and the lower part of the hands. A laser is then used to engrave the black numbers and cut the outer geometry of the needle. Finally, the disk is sent for the application of decals on the extremities of the hands.

From a watchmaker’s perspective, what are the details that really impress and make this watch stand out?
Grab a magnifying glass and spend some time looking at the quality of the finishing, the aesthetics of the components and the kinetic ballet of the movement. This is a piece that deserves to be activated and observed at close range to fully appreciate how it moves.
In motorsport, telemetry systems track critical metrics – engine torque, fuel efficiency, and tire pressure – to optimize performance and prevent failure. From the very beginning, Richard Mille has applied the same philosophy to watchmaking: the inclusion of a torque indication in the RM 001 announced an entirely new approach to the relationship between a watch and its wearer, and to the way the most complex mechanics can be monitored, and performance optimised.

In the RM 43-01, this concept is once again front and centre. The panoply of functional indications and read-outs – with eight hands across multiple displays – not only enhance utilization of the watch, but support chronometric efficiency, longevity, and reliability. Where traditional watches passively display the time, the RM 43-01 invites interaction and feeds back its performance. Wearers can fine-tune winding habits using real-time torque readings, monitor power levels, and select operational modes.

These dynamic indicators serve a singular purpose: maintaining peak efficiency, free from mechanical inconsistencies. This is something any driver of a high-performance car will recognise. The torque indicator optimizes chronometric stability by preventing inefficiencies in energy transmission, much like torque management in race cars ensures consistent power delivery. The power reserve functions as a fuel gauge, facilitating optimal energy management. The function inidcator provides intuitive control, akin to a car’s gearbox.



The pioneering split-seconds mechanism is operated by a start/stop pusher at 7 o’clock, split-seconds activator at 5 o’clock and reset button at 10 o’clock. The chronograph seconds hand is in bright red on the titanium version of the watch, and in yellow on the Carbon TPT^® model, superimposing the split-seconds hand underneath.

The chronograph’s 30-minute totaliser is located on the boldly skeletonised subdial at 9 o’clock, lying at the heart of the movement’s skeleton chassis. The red-tipped arrow-head hand, like the hands on the other indications, has been designed by Ferrari’s Centro Stile team.

Seconds Indicator
Mounted atop the tourbillon at 5 o’clock, the RM 43-01 presents an inventive new display for the active seconds, using five radial blades representing 12-second increments. Seconds can be counted as the blades, each white-tipped with a red marker, move successively past a 12-second index. Designed for total lightness and clarity, this tech-forward design echoes the five-tipped spline screw that is a hallmark of Richard Mille engineering.

Torque Indicator
A hallmark of Richard Mille’s high-performance engineering, the torque indicator measures the mainspring’s torque output to ensure optimal power delivery. In other words, while a traditional power reserve indicates how much energy remains in the mainspring, the torque indicator displays the quality of that energy. Together, these readouts transform the way a watch’s performance can be fed back to its wearer.

Displayed on a graduated scale in Newton-Millimeters (Nmm), the indicator uses a direct-force sensor to continuously monitor mainspring tension, thereby defining an optimal range for maintaining isochronism (consistent accuracy over time). If torque falls below 53 Nmm, the movement lacks sufficient energy for stability; if it exceeds 65 Nmm, excessive tension risks damaging the movement.

By maintaining an optimal efficiency zone, the torque indicator enhances both performance stability and mechanical integrity.

Power-Reserve Indicator
Positioned at 11 o’clock, the power-reserve indicator provides a straightforward yet crucial function: displaying the remaining energy stored in the mainspring, allowing the wearer to know when to wind the watch.

While a common complication in high-end watches, Richard Mille refines it with precision engineering. The final 10 hours of stored energy – though available – are not considered optimal for peak chronometry, mirroring motorsport fuel management strategies where performance is prioritized over mere fuel availability.

Working in tandem with the torque indicator, the power-reserve indicator ensures not just energy awareness but also optimal energy utilization.

Function indicator
In a manner similar to a car’s gearbox, the function indicator allows one to see the winding, neutral and hand-setting positions as the crown is pulled out. The active position is indicated via a hand at 4 o’clock pointing to the following functions: W (Winding) – N (Neutral) – H (Hands).

Calibre RM43-01: Manual winding tourbillon movement with:

• Hours, minutes, seconds
  
• Split-seconds chronograph
  
• 30-minute totalizer
  
• Power reserve
  
• Torque and function indicators

Movement dimensions: 31.20 x 36.45 x 7.47 mm
Balance wheel diameter: 10.00 mm
Jewels: 43
Balance wheel: Glucydur^®, 2 arms, 4 setting screws, moment of inertia 10 mg•cm², angle of lift 53°
Frequency: 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
Balance spring: Elinvar by Nivarox^®
Shock protection: KIF Elastor KE 160 B28

Power reserve
Around 70 hours (±10%), without chronograph running. Actual power-reserve results will depend on the period of time the chronograph is utilised.

Skeletonised grade 5 titanium baseplate
The baseplate has been finished in grade 5 titanium, a biocompatible, highly corrosion-resistant and remarkably rigid alloy, which enables the gear train to function effortlessly. The alloy is 90% grade 5 titanium, 6% aluminium and 4% vanadium. This combination further increases the mechanical properties of this material, which explains its frequent use in the aerospace, aeronautics and automotive industries.

Bridges in grade 5 titanium and carbon TPT^®
The titanium bridges have been skeletonised as far as possible to reduce the total weight of the calibre. This feat was also achieved through the incorporation of cutting-edge materials such as Carbon TPT^®, used for some bridges of the split- seconds chronograph.

These technical solutions give this complex calibre—with its extreme weight to resistance ratio—an impressive resistance capacity, tested in our workshops to shocks of over 5,000 g, a prowess for a watch combining a tourbillon escapement and a complex split-seconds chronograph mechanism.

Split-seconds system
The RM43-01 is equipped with the latest-generation split-seconds mechanism developed by Richard Mille and APLL (Audemars Piguet Le Locle).

Two 6-column wheel operates the different levers of the split-seconds function and optimises the chronograph’s operation. It ensures optimised simultaneous movement, maximal function locking, and greater adjustment durability. In- depth studies carried out on the function of clamps also led to a specific clamp design. The traditional helical spring is replaced by a blade on the split-seconds wheel, a technical decision that reduces the variation in torque when the split- seconds function is activated. All of these developments considerably improve the timekeeping performance and halve the chronograph’s energy consumption by reducing arbor friction.

Function indicator
In a manner similar to a car’s gearbox, the function indicator allows one to see the winding, neutral and hand-setting positions as the crown is pulled out. The active position is indicated via a hand at 4 o’clock pointing to the following functions: W (Winding) – N (Neutral) – H (Hands).

Torque indicator
This indicator supplies information about the mainspring’s tension, thus permitting an optimisation of the chronometric functioning of the movement.

Free-sprung balance with variable inertia
This type of balance wheel guarantees greater reliability when subjected to shocks and during assembly or dismantling of the movement, thus providing better chronometric results over time. The index is eliminated, thereby allowing a more precise and repeatable calibration using 4 setting screws.

Fast-rotating barrel (6 hours per revolution instead of 7.5 hours)
This type of barrel provides the following advantages:

• The phenomenon of periodic internal mainspring adhesion is significantly diminished, thereby increasing performance.
  
• Provision of an excellent mainspring delta curve with an ideal power reserve/performance and regularity ratio.

Winding-barrel teeth and third-wheel pinion with central involute profile
The central involute profile of the winding-barrel teeth provides an optimal pressure angle of 20°, which promotes effective rotary motion and compensates for possible varia�tions in the operation of the going train. This, in turn, ensures excellent torque transmission and a distinct improvement in performance.

Barrel pawl with progressive recoil
Ce dispositif apporte un gain appréciable (environ 20 %) au remontage, surtout lorsque le ressort est peu armé. Il contribue également à une répartition équilibrée de la tension interne du ressort-moteur.

Spline screws in grade 5 titanium for the bridges and case
The design of these screws permits better control of the torque applied during assembly. These screws are therefore unaffected by physical manipulation during assembly or disassembly and age well.

The design and execution of the watch demonstrate a holistic approach to conception of the movement, case and dial. As a result, everything has been constructed according to extremely rigorous specifications. For example, a casing ring is no longer used, and the movement is mounted on chassis mounting rubbers (ISO SW) fixed by titanium screws.

Carbon TPT^® version
Carbon TPT^® is a remarkable material with a unique finish. It is obtained by layering hundreds of sheets of carbon fibres (with a maximum thickness of 30 microns), by using an automated process that changes the orientation of the weft between layers. Heated to 120 °C at a pressure of 6 bars in an autoclave similar to those used for aeronautic components, the material is then ready to be machined at Richard Mille to create the case and its pushers.

Titanium version
The bezel and caseback are made of grade 5 titanium whilst the caseband and pushers are made of Carbon TPT^®. The bezels are microblasted with hand-polished bevels.

The tripartite case is water resistant to 50 metres, ensured by 2 Nitrile O-ring seals. The case is assembled with 20 grade 5 titanium spline screws and abrasion-resistant washers in 316 L stainless steel.

Dimensions: 42,90 x 17,10 x 51,20 mm

Torque limiting crown
This added security system prevents accidental overwinding of the watch, the result of which can cause damage such as breaking the winding stem or putting too much pressure on the barrel spring.

Dials
In satin-finished and microblasted grade 5 titanium, with hand-polished bevels.

Upper flange
In microblasted titanium with black galvanic treatment.

Bezel and caseback

• Bezel side: Sapphire crystal (1,800 Vickers) with anti-reflective treatment (on both sides).
  Thickness: 1.50 mm
  
• Caseback side: Sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment (on both sides).
  Thickness: 1.00 mm

Limited edition of:

• 75 pièces en titane
  
• 75 pieces in titanium and Carbon TPT^®

Movement

• Hand-polished bevelling
  
• Hand-polished locking sections
  
• Sapphire-microblasted milled sections
  
• Lapped and polished contact points
  
• Burnished pivots

Steel parts

• Wire-drawn and microblasted surfaces
  
• Hand-polished beveling

Wheels

• Concave chamfering with a diamond tool
  
• Circular-decorated front faces
  
• Rhodium plating (before cutting the teeth)
  
• Minimal corrections applied to the wheels in order to preserve geometry and performance.