Floyd "Money" Mayweather came up in this column a few weeks ago and, I have to say, he's fast becoming my hero for all the wrong reasons. No, we're not talking about his boxing skills - let's be honest, he's a bit dull to watch and I think we can all agree he's lucky to have dodged "The Fighting Congressman" Manny Pacquiao, because there's a high probability he'd lose. And we're definitely not talking about his rather unsavoury legal problems. Rather it's Mayweather's brazen ostentatiousness, his deliciously vulgar commitment to show off his wealth in the most public way possible. The man has three Bugatti Veyrons for Pete's sake! You have to admire the audacity. Circling back to watches, Mayweather's multimillion-dollar collection is equal parts incredible and absurd and, of course, chock-full of jewellery watches. So in honour of Money Mayweather, this week we'll take a look at some choice jewellery watches for men who've got it and want to flaunt it.
It's probably best to start with a jewellery brand that makes watches rather than a watchmaker moonlighting as a jeweller. London jeweller Graff Diamonds made a splash at Baselworld this year launching a US$55 million timepiece. Something less outlandish, well, in comparison, is the GyroGraff, which starts at US$500,000. The Diamond GyroGraff (see what they did there with the name?) is a large, brash 48mm white-gold watch (above right) that befits the DNA of Graff. Featuring 72 diamonds on the bezel and the crown for a total of more than eight carats, the watch makes use of Graff's mastery of invisible setting, which will appeal to anyone who knows their gems. A triangle-cut green emerald, meanwhile, is employed as a 12 o'clock indicator. This isn't just a show-pony watch, however. There is credible watchmaking here, with the 3-D moon-phase indicator on the left side of the dial and the biaxial tourbillon on the right side.
The braggart with taste would choose something a bit more elegant and niche such as the jewelled version of the Greubel Forsey Tourbillon 24 Seconds Contemporary (above left). The eyes are obviously drawn to the 272 baguette-cut diamonds on the split-face dial and set in the ring of the case and the lugs but the real gem is the 25-degree-inclined cage that holds the tourbillon, which rotates every 24 seconds. Greubel Forsey is rightly regarded as the authority when it comes to tourbillons so this watch features the cream of the crop of tourbillon technology. The overall design of the watch is wonderful, too, with the deep-blue half of the dial a nice sedate counterpoint to all those rocks. The white-gold case is sized at 43.5mm. Features beyond the tourbillon are minimal but then why would you need much else. There is, however, an indicator that tracks the 72 hours of power. This winning combination of diamonds and watchmaking savoir faire will set you back a cool HK$6.6 million.
