NEWS
INSIGHT-RADAR: Industry News
Lorige manufactures racing brakes, Phillips is auctioning off nearly 90 watches, and Blancpain is collaborating with Sarasa Yoshioka's dyeing studio.
At a Glance
- Lorige manufactures racing brakes, Phillips is auctioning off nearly 90 watches, and Blancpain is collaborating with Sarasa Yoshioka's dyeing studio.
Motorsports gear, a time-sensitive online auction, and botanical dyeing: The new INSIGHT-RADAR brings together three stories that explore watch culture beyond the traditional product—featuring Lorige, Phillips, and Blancpain × Sarasa Yoshioka
Lorige × Inter Europol Competition: Brakes Become Watch Cases
Lorige has become the official timekeeper for the Inter Europol Competition endurance racing team and is immediately putting this partnership into practice through its products. For the BL-Evolution “Competition,” the brand is repurposing used carbon-carbon brake components from the LMP2 race cars with start numbers 43 and 343 to create monobloc cases and dials.
The 50 × 42-millimeter case combines racing-inspired materials with a Grade 5 titanium bezel and caseback. Yellow and green accents echo the team’s colors. Inside, the hand-wound LOR-DB03 caliber features two mainsprings and a seven-day power reserve. The series is limited to 50 pieces.
Phillips New York Sessions: Just Under 90 Lots Through October 9
In its online auction “The New York Sessions, Fall 2026,” Phillips is offering nearly 90 collector’s watches. Bids will be accepted through October 9. The selection is headlined by a Voutilainen 28Sport with an onyx center and a blue guilloché hour ring—one of only eight stainless steel models in existence.
Other highlights include Patek Philippe, Rolex, F. P. Journe, A. Lange & Söhne, and Jaeger-LeCoultre. Highlighted lots include a Patek Philippe Ref. 5270J, a Rolex Daytona Ref. 116506 in platinum, and an F. P. Journe Octa Quantième Perpétuel. This announcement complements Phillips’ ongoing fall auction season without repeating the Geneva-related topics already covered.
Blancpain × Sarasa Yoshioka: Color from Plants
Blancpain is launching a collaboration with Sarasa Yoshioka and the Senshiyoshioka studio in Kyoto. There, botanical dyes are processed using techniques whose roots date back to the Edo period. The atelier thus embodies a craft that does not preserve historical methods as museum pieces, but rather adapts them for contemporary applications.
For now, the announcement does not involve a new watch. The collaboration is particularly interesting from a cultural and artisanal perspective: Both partners focus on slow, manual processes and the mindful application of traditional knowledge.
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