Budiey
One-two Punch. Fighters of yesteryear skies take on modern fighters in the arena as Aviator announced its partnership as official timepiece of the ONE Fighting Championship 2012
Aviator is proud to be the official timepiece sponsor of One Fighting Championship 2012 to be held in at Kuala Lumpur on 23 June 2012 at Stadium Negara for a night of action filled excitement and unrelenting adrenaline rushes.
ONE Fighting Championship™ is Asia’s largest Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) organization, featuring the best Asian fighters and the largest pan-Asian media broadcast. MMA fans satiated their hunger as champions from around the world competed for honour and glory in no-holds-barred steel cages.
The revival of an iconic watch from 1917 has invigorated Aviator and allowed it to shine on its own merit. Now, the Russian marquee will embark on a new journey to inject sophistication and precision timekeeping into an up-and-coming sport that is seeing a surge in cult popularity.
In the case of Aviator’s Bristol timepiece, it’s all the above. The conception of the Bristol is an interesting tale. Born in Russia, the Bristol watch is a response to Bristol fighter pilots who needed a robust wristwatch to monitor the time mid-battle when pocket watches no longer suffice. The original featured unusual lugs and a resolutely round shape reminiscent of the aircraft’s cockpit.
And now, decades after its debut, the Bristol is looking for a different brawl in a more contemporary arena. Models issued are nearly an exact replica of the original, save for today’s automatic ETA movement. Aviator has clearly journeyed through time since its inception that mirrors the progression of aircrafts from gliders to supersonic planes. From its humble beginning as a robust wristwatch to the precision instrument of choice for MIG pilots, Aviator is paying tribute to these legendary planes with each subsequent incarnation.
Over the decades, Aviator has been used by many people in extreme professions: such as military, rescuers and pilots – as well as horology aficionados – building an excellent reputation in Europe, America and Asia. A proud stance is inevitable as its forms a symbiotic association with yet another extreme profession – One Fighting championship.
Even as brutality of this multi-faceted mixed-martial art highlights bare-knuckled bouts and rough-and-tumble façade, it is a competition that requires lethal efficiency and execution that momentarily (until the sounding of the bell) dictates and rewards the survival of the fittest. It embodies the similar evolution of the brand which has survived wars and aerial battles for the better half of the 20th Century.
The same utilitarian and functional appeal still transcends in modern peaceful times as a style statement. Rarely, has hitching up one sleeves to check the time been more discretely satisfying.
Since 2011 Aviator watches have been developed and manufactured in Switzerland’s Canton of Jura – home of the watch making industry. This location facilitates collaboration with the highest quality suppliers enabling us to pursue our philosophy: to build reliable watches meeting the rigorous standards of time instruments, whilst combining original aviation designs.
In the cultural heart of the Jura, in the town of Porrentruy, designers and craftsmen brings together all the brand’s watch making operations, including research and development, movement modification, assembly of components, and rigorous multi-level quality tests. Every Aviator watch combines the professional skills and experience of watchmakers, with the sincere passion for aviation and the art of timepieces.
Today, it embraces a new persona as it makes inroads into a fascinating new arena where pummelling your opponents is just the beginning of an evolving recreational pursuit that epitomises the oft quoted Darwinian catchphrase.
Aviator watches are exclusively available at RED ARMY WATCHES boutiques (Pavilion KL, 1 Utama, Tropicana City Mall).
