Tudor Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing Review

Over the last month we have covered three watches from Tudor in-depth. We started with the recently released deep diving tool watch in the Pelagos Ultra, then moved on to the stunning Pelagos FXD GMT and last week we looked at the also recently released Black Bay 68. Like I said in the previous reviews, while I knew about Tudor and their watches well I had never spent much time with them in the metal. Now after spending a month with four different models from the brand, I can honestly say that I'm a fan.

The watch we're going to look at today is probably my favorite of the four watches sent, but before we get into that watch, let's first go over a quick history of Tudor. If you'd like a much more in-depth history of the brand, please read our review of the Pelagos Ultra where we really go into fine detail about the history of Tudor.



Tudor was first trademarked in 1926 for Rolex founder Hans Wilsdorf who wished to produce more affordable watches that still had the quality and performance of more expensive Rolex watches. "Montres TUDOR S.A." was then officially established in Geneva in 1946. A year later in 1947 the Tudor Oyster was released which featured the waterproof Oyster case from Rolex. This showed how committed Wilsdorf was to ensure that Tudor was a success.

The 1950s were an important decade for Tudor which first saw the Tudor Oyster Prince launched in 1952. The Oyster Prince featured Rolex's perpetual self-winding rotor and was featured in a robust advertising campaign that really highlighted the durability and quality of the Tudor produced watches. Two years later in 1954 the Tudor Submariner was released that borrowed innovations and design cues from the recently released dive watch pioneer, the Rolex Submariner. The Submariner was a hit and used heavily by both civilian and military divers.



The 1960s and 70s saw some important firsts for Tudor including the introduction of their new famous "snowflake" hands as well as their first manually wound and automatic chronographs. Over the coming decades Tudor would see a decline in the popularity of the brand and in the 1990s the brand ceased operations in the United States.

In 2009 Tudor started a complete global brand relaunch that also brought upon a new identity. The defining year for Tudor's relaunch was 2012 when they released their two most popular collections, the Black Bay and Pelagos series. A year later in 2013 Tudor finally reentered the US market on the success of the Black Bay and Pelagos. The coming years saw many innovations from the brand including producing their own manufacture calibers as well as experimenting with high tech case materials like titanium, ceramic and carbon.





Initial Thoughts

The watch we're going to be taking a look today is the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing which was released in the summer of 2023. While this Pelagos FXD might not be the newest release from Tudor, it really is the one that checks most of the boxes off for me.

When the Pelagos FXD arrived the first thing I noticed about it was how lightweight it was due to its stunning black carbon composite case. On the fabric strap the watch weighed in at 78 grams on our scale. With a case diameter of 42 mm that is a very respectable weight and right in line with a few watches I own that are crafted out of titanium or carbon and have similar case sizes. I just love lightweight watches, so the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing got off to a good start with me.



The next thing I noticed about the Pelagos FXD was the awesome one piece fabric strap. Over the last few years I've really been liking fabric straps with Velcro fasteners and the two personal watches I wear the most, the IWC GST Aquatimer 2000 and Porsche Design Ocean 2000, are both on these kind of straps. So that the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing featured one of these straps was a big plus.

The last thing I noticed about the Pelagos FXD during my initial time with the watch was its color scheme and branding. During the 2000s I was a huge fan of Royal Oak Offshore limited edition watches from Audemars Piguet. At the time Audemars Piguet was the sponsor of Alinghi and released numerous limited edition Offshores with Alinghi branding. I have fond memories of wearing all these different watches, so the tie in is great. Although the Red Bull Racing connection here is for sailing and not Formula One, it's hard to not instantly think of the up until recently dominating Red Bull Racing F1 team when looking at the Deep Blue and red found on the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing.





Technical Specifications

Now that we've gone over the history of Tudor along with my initial thoughts of the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing, let's now take a look at the technical specifications of the watch. The Pelagos has a case fully crafted out of matte black carbon composite. The case diameter is 42 mm and the bezel slightly overhangs the case with a diameter of 42.5 mm. The lug to lug length is 50 mm and at its thickest point the watch is 14 mm tall. As mentioned before, the Pelagos FXD weighs in at 78 grams.

The Pelagos FXD has a slightly raised flat sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating on it. Underneath the crystal clear sapphire is the matte blue dial which perfectly matches the colors of Red Bull Racing. Tudor uses applied white hour markers on the Pelagos FXD with all the markers being squares except for 3, 6, and 9 which are larger rectangles. Tudor also uses a triangle marker at 12 o'clock. The hour markers are coated with Super-Luminova Grade X1 which glows a stunning blue in low light situations.



There are three centrally mounted hands on the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing being the hour, minute and seconds hands. The hour hand uses the traditional "snowflake" hand while the minute hand is pencil shaped. The seconds hand is red and features a diamond shaped tip about three fourths of the way down. This tip and the entire hour and minute hands are covered with the same blue lume found on the hour markers.

The rehaut features the white printed minute track along with the Alinghi Red Bull Racing branding. At 12 o'clock there is Tudor branding and their rose and shield logo. At 6 o'clock is the Pelagos branding in red along with "Chronometer Officially Certified 200 m – 660 ft" as well as "Swiss Made".



Moving on from the dial is the 120 click bi-directional titanium bezel with a matte black carbon composite insert. The bezel is very nicely scalloped and could easily be operated with dive gloves. The bezel does not make much noise when turning it, but the action is very precise and there is no back play. Unlike most dive bezels you see, the Pelagos FXD has a reversed dive time bezel which is actually a countdown timer. In a race if there was a five minute start sequence, the bezel would be set to "5" and when the minute hand approached the triangular marker on the bezel the crew would know the gun was about to fire signaling the start of the race. Once again all of the bezel markers are covered with matching blue lume to the hour markers and hands.

Looking at the case of the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing you can see the matte finish to the carbon composite. It's extremely obvious that this watch is a pure tool watch given its complete lack of any polished finishes. Looking at the profile of the case you can see that there is a slight curve to the case that follows your wrist.



On the right hand side of the watch are two large crown guards that protect a nicely scalloped titanium crown. This screw down crown is topped with the Tudor logo and aids in the 200 meters of water resistance. Unscrewing the crown allows you to manually wind the automatic movement in the resting position. Since there is no date, there is only one additional crown position. Pulling the crown out to position one allows you to set the time and also stops the seconds hand. Pushing the crown back in causes no jump in the minutes hand and getting the crown to catch to screw back in takes no additional care.

The Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing has solid lugs and accepts 22 mm wide single piece straps. The strap supplied with the watch is a blue fabric strap with a Velcro like fastener. The end of the strap also has a red tip to match the blue and red colors of Red Bull Racing. The top portion of the strap includes a titanium piece that allows for extra articulation of the strap. The strap is extremely comfortable and keeps the watch in place on your wrist nicely. I do wish Tudor would have made the end of the strap have a stopper on it though, it is possible, however unlikely that you could pull the strap fully through the titanium piece and have it come off your wrist if not careful.



Flipping the watch over shows off the solid titanium screw down case back with an engraving of the Alinghi Red Bull Racing logo on it. There are also engravings for "Tudor Geneve" and "Calibre Manufacture" around the logo. Beating underneath the solid case back is the Swiss Made manufacture Calibre MT5602 automatic movement. The movement features bi-directional winding and is a certified chronometer. The movement beats away at 28,800 vph (4Hz) and has 70 hours of power reserve. On our timegrapher the Pelagos FXD showed an accuracy of +1 second per day when averaged out over several positions, which is well within chronometer specifications.



On The Wrist

Naturally the Tudor Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing was a treat on the wrist. Its ultra lightweight case and infinitely adjustable fabric strap made the watch an awesome wrist companion. The 50 mm lug to lug length falls right in the sweet spot for my 7.25 inch wrist with a 55 mm flat area and it never favored one side of my wrist over the other. Even on 100 degree days the watch was never a bother and pretty much completely disappeared on the wrist. This is exactly how I like a watch to feel when being worn.



My typical dress is a black t-shirt, shorts and sneakers. Normally I'm not a huge fan of blue on watches, but the blue hue found on the Pelagos FXD is very dark and blended in just fine with whatever I was wearing. The black carbon composite case also did a lot to help out here. It would be interesting to put the watch on a black strap and see how much it changed the character of the watch.

To test the legibility of a watch I use a very simple technique, which is to see how hard it is to tell the time while driving at a glance. Dive watches always excel at this test and while the Tudor FXD isn't a truly dedicated dive watch, it does share enough traits with a diver that I believed it would do well in this test. In no surprise the Pelagos FXD passed my legibility test with flying colors. The blue dial is dark enough that it has great contrast with the white hour markers and hands. The only thing that could have made the watch easier to tell the time on quickly is if Arabic numerals would have been used for the hour markers, but it really doesn't go with the design language of the watch. Also with so much lume on the dial and bezel, telling the time in low light situations was a breeze.



I wore the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing out and about on everyday errands as well as out to dinner and drinks. On all occasions the watch was a treat to wear, especially just due to its ability to blend in and also the ultra comfortable nature of the watch. The watch would only be there when I needed it and there was never a hint of wrist fatigue. Being a tool watch with a matte blue dial and black carbon composite case the Pelagos FXD didn't get much attention while out. I did have two people comment on the watch that were familiar with Tudor and both just loved the lightweight construction and look of the carbon case.



Value and Position in the Market

Of course when it comes to talking about a watch and also reviewing it, one of the most important aspects of the watch is its price. If I was looking at the specs of the Tudor Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing such as a carbon composite case, manufacture movement and coming from a very respected brand I'd imagine the price would be far higher than the $4,100 Tudor asks for the watch. I feel the watch is an amazing value, but we need to look at a few other watches with similar specifications and features to see where the Pelagos FXD fits in value wise.



First up we have the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M in black ceramic with a case diameter of 43.5 mm. The watch has a similar blacked out look to it as the Tudor and features a bit more water resistance at 300 meters being a dedicated diver. The Seamaster is powered by an in-house movement with less power reserve at 55 hours. The Seamaster is also more than double the price of the Pelagos FXD at $9,400.

Next up we have the SUB 300 Carbon from Doxa which has a 42.5 mm case made out of forged carbon. The SUB 300 is also a dedicated dive watch and as such has a 300 meter water resistance as well. The SUB 300 has a unique vintage dive look to it that might not be for everyone. The DOXA is powered by an off the shelf Swiss movement and has only 38 hour of power reserve. The DOXA falls short of the Tudor in a few key areas and costs a bit less at $3,990.



Moving on is the Luminor Marina Carbotech PAM02661 which has a 44 mm case diameter and is crafted out of Panerai's Carbotech. The watch has the traditional Panerai Luminor cushion case design with the patented crown guard. The Luminor is another dedicated diver and has 300 meters of water resistance and runs on an in-house automatic movement with 72 hours of power reserve. The Luminor is also much more expensive than the Pelagos FXD at $15,600.

Finally we have the T-183 Forged Carbon from Squale which has a 42 mm case made out of forged carbon. The T-183 also has an all blacked out look like the other watches I've featured here and has a vintage diver look with the crown positioned at 4:30. The T-183 has a very impressive water resistance of 600 meters and runs on an off the shelf Sellita movement with only 38 hours of power reserve. Like the DOXA, the Squale also compromises on a few things and comes in much cheaper than the Tudor at $1,810.



Looking at the four watches we compared to the Pelagos FXD you can see that the watch represents a great value. The DOXA and Squale are indeed less expensive than the Tudor, but neither feature an in-house or manufacture movement which adds substantial cost to the production of a watch. On the other hand the Panerai and Omega have very similar features to the Tudor but cost over two times as much. All the other watches were also dedicated divers and had at least 100 meters more water resistance, but 200 meters is more than anyone will truly ever see in the water, especially considering recreational diving ends at 40 meters of depth.



Closing Thoughts

So in the end is the Tudor Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing for me? In all honesty it really is. I love the right at 50 mm lug to lug length combined with the very lightweight carbon composite case. Coming on a very comfortable and endlessly adjustable fabric strap is also a nice bonus. The tie in to Alinghi is welcomed and brings back memories of all the Alinghi Royal Oak Offshores I wore back in the day.



The manufacture movement is also dead on accurate and shows that Tudor isn't only proficient at producing cases, but they are no slouches when it comes to movement manufacturing as well. If I had minor issues with the watch it would be the reverse countdown bezel and the blue coloring. I see the usefulness in the countdown bezel, especially in yacht racing, but I wouldn't have much use for it. Also I'm not a fan of blue on watches, but the blue used on the Pelagos FXD is dark enough to not bother me. I fully understand the connection to Red Bull Racing and why the color was used, I'd still prefer black in the end. Neither are even close to deal breakers for me though.

Would I then recommend the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing to those looking for a carbon sports watch? I would with no hesitation recommend the watch to somebody looking for that kind of watch. The Pelagos FXD is a phenomenal value when looking at all the features packed into it and really excels at being a true "Go Anywhere Do Anything" kind of watch. I would say if this was going to your only watch that you would need to have a pretty casual lifestyle since this might not be the perfect watch for the office or more formal events.



After spending nearly a month with four different models from Tudor I can honestly say that I'm now very impressed with the watches they produce. Coming from a place of only knowing Tudor watches through pictures and videos getting some real hands on time with the brand has really made me a fan. While I do respect Rolex for what they have done for the watch industry, I wouldn't call myself a fan of theirs since they tend to play it too safe. Tudor on the other hand is much more adventurous with their designs and case materials and plays much more to my personal preferences. It easy to look at Tudor and even going off of the original reason the brand was created and just think of them as being a more affordable Rolex, but I honestly don't feel that way about the brand. Tudor has really forged their own path over the last decade and these four watches have shown me the quality of watches they produce.

Once again I'd really like to thank Tudor for sending us these four watches and hopefully in the near future we can get in some of their upcoming releases and see how the brand is evolving. After experiencing these four watches, I'm really excited to see what they bring out next.

For more information about the Pelagos FXD Alinghi Red Bull Racing please visit : Tudor



Technical Specifications

Reference Number: M25707KN-0001

Retail Price: $4,100

Case Size: 42 mm (42.5 mm with Bezel Overhang)

Lug to Lug: 50 mm

Thickness: 14 mm

Weight: 78 grams

Case Material: Carbon Composite

Bezel: Bi-Directional 120 Click Titanium with Carbon Composite Insert

Strap: Blue Fabric Strap with Velcro Closure

Movement: Swiss Made Manufacture Automatic Calibre MT5602

Functions: Hours, Minutes, Seconds

Power Reserve: 70 Hours

Water Resistance: 200 Meters