Page 94 - The Book For Men Spring/Summer 2024

THE SUBMERSIBLE QUARANTAQUATTRO LUNA ROSSA New Zealand, Switzerland, and the U.S.) to take home the prize. “It’s like a drug,”
Ti-Ceramitech is made for winners. Despite featuring elements similar to previous editions of Panerai’s flagship diver’s watch — the patented safety lock over the crown, a robust Swiss-made automatic movement, and a substantial 44 mm case — the newest addition to the Panerai family is perhaps its most advanced model yet. And it ought to be. With a case and bezel protected by an innovative ceramic coating, and a depth rating of 500 metres, the Submersible QuarantaQuattro Luna Rossa Ti-Ceramitech will be going along for the ride as the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli sailing team attempts to make history at the 37th America’s Cup.
From August to October, teams representing Italy, France, New Zealand, Switzerland, the U.S., and the U.K. will push the world’s most advanced sailboats to their limits. They’ll fly high above the waves, clearing the water on massive hydrofoils as they compete for the oldest trophy in the world of sport. “It’s not easy,” says Max Sirena, Luna Rossa team director and skipper. “It’s almost impossible to win the Cup.” A three-decade veteran of America’s Cup racing, Sirena should know. And, while Italian teams have been vying for the Cup since the early 1980s, they have yet to join the elite club of nations (Australia,
Sirena says of the obsessiveness the event inspires in himself and his teammates. “In the end, the fastest boat is going to win, and that means making one less mistake than your opponents.”
Panerai has been involved in America’s Cup sailing since 2017, and has been the official sponsor of the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team since 2019. It’s a partnership born out of shared nationality and a like-minded ethos, says Panerai CEO Jean-Marc Pontroué. “Our association with the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team resonates deeply with Panerai’s maritime heritage and our pursuit of boundary-pushing performance,” he says, referencing Panerai’s roots as a supplier of high-performance diving watches to the Italian Navy. “It’s not like we did a survey of hundreds of different brands. We had one race, the America’s Cup, and one team, which was Luna Rossa. Did we have a Plan B? No.”
The new Submersible QuarantaQuattro Luna Rossa Ti-Ceramitech, then, is a watch befitting of its namesake in both appearance and performance. “We know that watches worn by these guys are badly treated,” says Pontroué, citing the extreme physicality required to race an experimental sailboat on the open ocean at more than 100 km/h. Ti-Ceramitech, he says, was in part inspired by
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