Ahead of the Miami race weekend, IWC Schaffhausen hosted an exclusive event in true Miami-style at rooftop restaurant Fabel. The event brought together key figures for a candid conversation on how the adrenaline-fueled world of FORMULA 1 was authentically captured in Apple Original Films and Warner Bros. Pictures’ upcoming movie F1. Moderated by Immy Barclay, the conversation included Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team Principal Toto Wolff and driver George Russell, actresses Kerry Condon and Simone Ashley, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer. Günther Steiner also made a guest appearance.
The weekend of the MIAMI GRAND PRIX kicks the city’s vibrant energy into overdrive with the excitement of the motorsport reaching beyond the track. Commencing the race weekend, IWC Schaffhausen took over rooftop restaurant Fabel in the hip Wynwood district for an evening of racing and movie magic. The event brought together its team partners from the real and fictional worlds of FORMULA 1 – Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team and the event film of the summer, F1. In conversation on-stage for the first time were Mercedes- AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team Principal and CEO Toto Wolff and driver George Russell alongside stars from the movie production, actresses Kerry Condon and Simone Ashley, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer. It was moderated by FORMULA 1 commentator Immy Barclay. Fellow FORMULA 1 commentator Günther Steiner also made a special guest appearance.
A story fueled by authenticity
The real and fictional worlds are, however, not that far apart but instead closely intertwined. Starring Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes, the movie tells the story of “the greatest that never was,” FORMULA 1’s most promising phenom of the 1990s until an accident on the track nearly ended his career. Thirty years later, he is a nomadic racer-for-hire when he is approached by his former teammate Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), owner of a struggling FORMULA 1 team that is on the verge of collapse. Ruben convinces Sonny to come back to FORMULA 1 for one last shot at saving the team and being the best in the world. He will drive alongside Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris), the team’s hotshot rookie intent on setting his own pace. But as the engines roar, Sonny’s past catches up with him and he finds that in FORMULA 1, your teammate is your fiercest competition – and the road to redemption is not something you can travel alone.
The ambitious movie project captures FORMULA 1 like never before, taking cinematic engineering to another level. Set against the backdrop of actual Grand Prix™ races, the film crew traveled alongside the real FORMULA 1 teams for two years.
The conversation offered many behind-the-scenes insights into the production, including Toto Wolff revealing how he suggested adapting real F2 cars for the movie to maintain authentic speed and performance. Jerry Bruckheimer explained how they had to engineer a new camera set-up and why its partnership with IWC helps convey the story authentically. Kerry Condon and George Russell explained how it was to work alongside each other during the races.
Guests in attendance also had the opportunity to explore the APXGP watch collection inspired by the movie, which was launched at Watches and Wonders Geneva this year. The limited-edition Ingenieur Automatic 40 (Ref. IW328908) features a green dial and is derived from a prop watch worn by Sonny Hayes. With the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph APXGP (Ref. IW378009) and the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph 41 APXGP (Ref. IW388116), IWC celebrates its official sponsorship of the fictional APXGP team appearing in the movie. On display was also the Pilot’s Watch Performance Chronograph 41 in 18-carat 5N gold (Ref. IW388309).
Jerry Bruckheimer wore the Pilot’s Watch Performance Chronograph 41 (Ref. IW388309), while Kerry Condon and Simone Ashley were spotted with the newly introduced Ingenieur Automatic 35 with respectively a black dial (Ref. IW324906) and silver dial (Ref. IW324901). Toto Wolff wore the Big Pilot’s Watch Shock Absorber XPL Toto Wolff x Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team (Ref. IW356201), launched earlier this year in dedication to the longstanding partnership between the Swiss luxury watch manufacturer and the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team. George Russell sported a one-of-a-kind black ceramic Ingenieur Automatic 42 with a dial in his signature blue color.
Immy Barclay wore the Pilot’s Watch Mark XX Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team (Ref. IW328210), and Günther Steiner wore the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph APXGP (Ref. IW378009).
About the movie F1
Set for release this summer by Warner Bros. Pictures, Apple Original Films’ F1 is directed by Joseph Kosinski, and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, Kosinski, seven-time FORMULA 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, and Chad Oman. It stars Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Tobias Menzies, Kim Bodnia, and Javier Bardem.
Apple Original Films Presents a Monolith Pictures / Jerry Bruckheimer / Plan B Entertainment / Dawn Apollo Films Production, A Film by Joseph Kosinski, F1, distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, in theatres and IMAX nationwide on June 27, 2025, and internationally beginning June 25, 2025.
Watch the official F1 trailer here.
