TAG Heuer Teams Up With Team Ikuzawa and Bamford for a 1980s Racing Inspired Carrera Glassbox

By Ben McKimm - News

Updated: 12 August, 2026

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Table of contents

Table of contents

• Vintage Stopwatch Heritage and Glassbox Architecture
• Engineering the In-House Calibre TH20-10
• The Editor’s Take
• Price and Availability

Readtime: 7 min

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• Three-way collaboration between TAG Heuer, Team Ikuzawa, and Bamford.
• Limited to 150 individually numbered pieces worldwide, not available in Australia.
• Features a white Clou de Paris dial inspired by Heuer’s Roadmaster stopwatch.
• Powered by an in-house automatic Calibre TH20-10 with an 80-hour power reserve.
• Includes 7-row steel bracelet and two extra straps in toolbox packaging.

You’ve heard of the phrase “too many cooks in the kitchen,” but what happens when modern horology, Japanese motorsport culture, and bespoke design join forces? Well, the watch world takes notice.

With the runaway success of their initial collaboration three years ago, TAG Heuer has officially reunited with legendary racing outfit Team Ikuzawa and London customisation authority Bamford Watch Department. The result is the TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph x Team Ikuzawa (ref. CBS221M.EB0435), a hyped limited edition that channels 1980s pit-lane adrenaline into the celebrated Glassbox silhouette.

It’s not for everyone, if only because it has a strict global run of just 150 individually numbered pieces (USD$10,500, €10,450, £8,850). However, with meticulous attention to detail, the timepiece positions itself in a rarefied collector bracket alongside iconic motorsport chronographs. The entire 39mm architecture is crafted from fine-brushed and polished stainless steel, utilising TAG Heuer’s celebrated bezel-free Glassbox geometry. Paired with a tactile white Clou de Paris hobnail dial and punchy red pit-lane accents, the watch carries a distinct tactile weight that feels like a piece of genuine vintage racing equipment on the wrist.

Motorsport purists will immediately recognise the high-contrast aesthetic as an explicit homage to the 1980s Heuer Roadmaster dash-mounted stopwatch. Founded in 1981 by famed Japanese racing driver Tetsu Ikuzawa and now led by his daughter, Mai, the team’s signature red-and-white visual codes and rarity have already been lapped up by collectors who appreciate the Japanese racing heritage and Swiss horological crossover. Let’s take a closer look.

Vintage Stopwatch Heritage and Glassbox Architecture

The base for this release is TAG Heuer’s 39mm steel Glassbox case. By doing away with a traditional bezel and extending a domed sapphire crystal directly over the edge of the watch body, the black flange with its 60-second scale curves upward beneath the glass. This provides an uninterrupted view of the dial from virtually any angle, tipping a hat to Jack Heuer’s original mandate for instant legibility, and also just creating a bloody good-looking timepiece.

Where traditional Carreras feature applied metal indices, George Bamford and Mai Ikuzawa opted for bold, printed black numeral indexes set against a crisp white Clou de Paris hobnail dial, inspired directly by a vintage Roadmaster handheld stopwatch discovered in Bamford’s archives. The stylised 30-minute totaliser at 3 o’clock features a segmented track with circled numbers pulled directly from the vintage dash instrument.

Bright red lacquer highlights the hour and minute hands, central chronograph seconds hand, 3 o’clock minute counter, and a subtle ring surrounding the winding crown.

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Engineering the In-House Calibre TH20-10

Beneath the sapphire exhibition caseback sits the manufacturer’s automatic Calibre TH20-10. Operating at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour (4Hz), the movement features a column-wheel and vertical-clutch configuration to ensure crisp chronograph pusher engagement. More importantly to the owner, it features an 80-hour power reserve and is driven by a bidirectional oscillating weight shaped to match the iconic TAG Heuer shield logo.

On the exhibition caseback, there are exclusive caseback engravings, featuring Team Ikuzawa and Bamford Watch Department signatures, along with limited-edition individual numbering from 001 to 150. Meanwhile, on the dial face, printed black numerals replace traditional applied indices over a crisp white Clou de Paris hobnail texture, recreating the graphic clarity of Heuer’s vintage Roadmaster stopwatch.

Rounding out the details is a collector-grade unboxing set, which each timepiece is delivered inside a red lacquered steel toolbox inspired by vintage racing pit garages. Inside, owners will find a seven-row steel bracelet, a perforated white leather driving strap, a bi-colour textile strap, a black leather watch roll, a red travel pouch, and three custom keychains and charms.

The Editor’s Take

High-profile three-way collaborations in the watch industry can sometimes feel over-hyped and over-complicated, but this effort lives up to the surrounding excitement.

Replacing standard metal hour markers with printed stopwatch numerals on a Clou de Paris background gives the 39mm Glassbox an instrument feel that stands out for high-end collectors and newcomers interested in adding a Carrera Glassbox to their collections.

This release is strictly capped at just 150 individually numbered watches globally, and at USD$10,500, it’s unlikely that any buyer allocated a watch will lose a cent. The inclusion of three distinct mounting options (a seven-row steel bracelet, a perforated white leather driving strap with red stitching, and a twin-striped textile strap) alongside the red pit-lane mechanics’ toolbox, leather watch roll, travel pouch, and custom charms makes a strong case for being one of the best executions of motorsport culture this year.

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Price and Availability

The TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph x Team Ikuzawa (ref. CBS221M.EB0435) is listed at USD$10,500, €10,450, £8,850, and is strictly limited to 150 individually numbered pieces globally. Retail availability is managed through select TAG Heuer boutiques and online allocations. Otherwise, more information is available at the brand’s website linked below.

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