breitling watches

Barry Cohen and Tony Kanaan are a match made in car- and watch-guy heaven. Three years ago, the Brazilian race car driver and IndyCar series star was looking for a new timepiece partner. Kanaan wanted his next signature watch line to be high-quality, stylish, and within a reasonable price range. He eventually hooked up with Cohen, the founder and CEO of Luminox Watch Company, who delivered exactly that.

"You know, some of the other drivers want a $20,000 watch," Kanaan explained in his trailer prior to a press conference at the recent GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma. (He finished tenth.) "Yeah, it's nice; that's awesome. But we built something, that if you look, I mean, I put my watch and Dario's (Franchitti) watch right beside each other; Dario's watch is like five or six grand.

"I asked some people who didn't understand anything about watches, 'Which one was more expensive?' Four out of five people picked mine. So basically we were able to build something affordable for everybody and you still look at it and you think, 'Man, this watch must be expensive.'"

"Watch guys are car guys, and vice versa. That's usually how it goes," explained Cohen. "I've always been fascinated and passionate about cars, their intricacies, and performance possibilities. A lot of our wearers are, too." Cohen is so fascinated, in fact, that he just placed an order for a Ferrari 458 Italia. (Kanaan already has one.)

Given Luminox's relatively small operation, and Cohen's high level of involvement and interest in racing and expanding his brand's global recognition, Kanaan has been able to work hand-in-hand with Luminox's American and Swiss teams to create a full line of limited edition watches. Many top-level drivers (F1, NASCAR, etc.) have signature watches, but not all get to interact as freely and as friendly as Cohen and Kanaan.

"Once a year we try to sit down and plan," said Kanaan. "We planned this watch a year ago. So now that this one is out, we're going to sit down again and exchange ideas. I'll give all the ideas that I have, he'll put his ideas together, then we'll send to the designers. They'll send us back 25 different drawings. We'll pick a few, then we start the final process.

"Now we're going for the automatic (movements). I don't know where else we'll end up, but we'll just keep going. Even Benito (Kanaan's manager) had a little bit of input. We don't listen to him much, though!"

Luminox doesn't pay Kanaan to wear its wares, rather, they have a long-term creative partnership - another rarity in today's racing world. The watch company gets very good exposure, while Kanaan gets a personalized watch that embodies his identity. The latest green and yellow TK Series 1148 ($1250) is limited to 999 units. It has a three-layer bezel, an asymmetric design, quartz movement, car gauge-inspired dials, and a carbon-fiber and steel casing. Given how quickly his previous two watches sold out, this one shouldn't have a problem flying off the shelves.

"If I see (my watch) I get so excited!" Kanaan said. "For instance, two races ago, I have this fan from Japan. He came over, he and his wife. He's been my fan forever. They both show up, one with each model. I hadn't given it to him; he bought it in Japan. I've seen a couple back home in Brazil, too."