One of the most anticipated displays at this year’s WatchTime New York event was the latest iteration of Greubel Forsey’s GMT Sport. WatchTime New York occurred from the 22nd-24th of October and showcased rare and new-to-market timepieces from over 25 prestigious brands.
The latest edition of the GMT Sport has two new and original versions, one in titanium and one in 18k 5N red gold. Greubel Forsey are inventors who pride themselves on continually creating a better product, both ergonomically and aesthetically. For the latest GMT Sport, they have created a streamlined case design and have updated the colourway. The streamlined case design is uniquely curved in order to fit any wrist perfectly; the face looks perfectly round from the top view. However, the side view reveals the curvature of the accentuated, arched and oval shape. Furthermore, the case has a variable geometry-shaped bezel that is hand-polished with hand-finished straight graining.
Key features of GMT Sport watches are a 2nd time zone, rotating globe with universal time, day-and-night, universal time on 24 time zones, summer and wintertime, cities observing summertime, GMT and Earth pushers, Tourbillon 24 Secondes, hours and minutes, small seconds and 72-hours power reserve.
Frequently, the inclusion of a tourbillon in a watch signifies that it is luxurious because it shows that the owner prioritises craftsmanship and aesthetics. Originally, tourbillon’s were used to increase the accuracy of pocket watches. However, this accuracy does not occur in modern wristwatches due to them resting in both vertical and horizontal positions. Interestingly, Greubel Forsey have invented a tourbillon that still improves the accuracy of wristwatches by having the tourbillon inclined on a 25-degree angle. The Tourbillon 24 seconds is displayed between 12 and 2 o’clock and completes a full rotation every 24 seconds, much faster than the usual tourbillon. With its rapid rotation and 25-degree incline, the GMT Sport’s tourbillon significantly improves the chronometric performance.
The GMT Sport has a stunning display, which Greubel Forsey describes as “an open, orchestrated theatre between suspended, semi-apparent wheels and floating dials in three dimensions”. The hours and minutes indexes are luminescent, allowing the use of the watch anywhere and the displayed tourbillon has a gold rotation indicator. Furthermore, between 6 and 9 o’clock, there is a rotating globe with a fixed day-and-night Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) indicator in engraved and lacquered synthetic sapphire. Every display element shows Greubel Forsey’s commitment to legibility and efficiency with the hours and minutes displayed on concentric open-worked hands.
Greubel Forsey’s first GMT Sport watch, released in 2019, solidified the brand’s place in the luxury sport-watch market. With every iteration, they continue to improve the ergonomics and aesthetics of the GMT Sport, and the latest titanium and 5N Red Gold versions are a must-have for luxury watch lovers.