Panerai’s New Race-Ready Tool Watches Are Surprisingly Sleek

If there’s one sport luxury watch brands love, it’s auto racing. But if there are two sports they love, then number two is definitely sailing.

That’s especially true of the America’s Cup, the oldest continually operating international sports competition in the world. The iconic yacht race counts Omega as its official timekeeper, while individual teams have been sponsored by brands including Bremont and TAG Heuer.

Currently, outside of Omega, the most prominent watch sponsors of the America’s Cup are Tudor, which is the lead sponsor for Team Alinghi out of Switzerland, and Panerai, which is now in its seventh year as the watch sponsor for Italy’s Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli.

Panerai has created countless Luna Rossa-edition watches throughout its partnerships, but its latest stand out for their surprise sleekness.

Panerai

Silver sailors

Panerai has launched two new Luna Rossa tool watches, a GMT and a chronograph, both of which feature the same shimmering, monochromatic design.

I’ll start with the GMT, Reference PAM01791. It’s a Luminor GMT in stainless steel with a 40mm case and matching steel bracelet, making this the first Luna Rossa watch to come on a bracelet.

The watch features a sandwich dial that’s among the most contemporary-looking I’ve seen from Panerai, as the top plate is silver with a sunray finish, and the luminous lower level is coated with white Super-LumiNova rather than a yellow or green-tinted one like we’re used to seeing.

Panerai

That same white lume appears on the handset, which features bright red accents on the arrow tip of the GMT hand and the small seconds hand at 9:00; the only pops of color on the watch. The lume glows green everywhere but the GMT hand, which glows blue.

You may be wondering why there’s no 24-hour scale on the dial. Well, that’s because many of Panerai’s GMT movements, like the Calibre P.900/GMT automatic that powers this watch, display both time zones in a 12-hour format, meaning you don’t have to do any math to calculate the time in your second time zone. The movement has a power reserve of 3 days and is visible through a sapphire caseback.

Next, we have a Luminor Chronograph, reference PAM01768. It shares a lot in common with its GMT sibling, including the same sandwich dial with a sunburst silver top layer over a white Super-LumiNova base. It also gets similar red accents, with a red hand on the 30-minute chronograph register at 3:00 and a red tip on the centrally mounted chronograph seconds hand.

Panerai

The chrono receives just a touch more color than the GMT, though, as its chronograph pushers, located on the left side of the case to accommodate the right side’s signature crown-protecting device, are both accented with red rings. The dial is, of course, a bit busier, too, with a tachymeter scale printed on the rehaut.

The chronograph doesn’t get a bracelet like the GMT, but its strap does mark another first for the Luna Rossa line. It’s a waterproof, elasticated Velcro strap that allows for a custom fit on the wrist. It’s black with a woven texture and features a red stripe with Luna Rossa branding in white text. The watch also includes a rubber strap, in case you’re not feeling the Velcro.

The movement powering this 44mm stainless steel beast is the Panerai Cal. P.9210 calibre automatic chronograph, which oscillates at 4Hz with a 42-hour power reserve. Unlike the GMT’s movement, it’s hidden behind a solid steel caseback.

Panerai

Availability and pricing

The next America’s Cup doesn’t take place until June of 2027, but you can pick up one of these Luna Rossa watches from Panerai now.

The PAM01791 GMT is priced at $11,400, while the PAM01768 has a nearly identical SRP of $11,500.

Panerai

Panerai Luminor Luna Rossa GMT PAM01791

Specs

Case Size	40mm
Movement	Panerai Cal. P.900/GMT automatic GMT
Water Resistance	100m

• $11,400 at Panerai

Panerai

Panerai Luminor Luna Rossa Chrono PAM01768

Specs

Case Size	44mm
Movement	Panerai Cal. P. 9210 automatic chronograph
Water Resistance	100m

• $11,500 at Panerai

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