The Hublot MP-11 Gets a New “Water Blue” Sapphire Treatment

Watches & Wonders 2024 is here, and with it comes another addition to Hublot’s expanding lineup of colorful sapphire-cased watches. These vibrantly hued sapphire cases have become a bit of a staple for Hublot in the last few years, and I am here for it.

As someone whose preferences typically skew towards the sensible and sedate, you might be surprised to learn that, in staunch defiance of my typical taste and common sense, Hublot’s experiments have produced some of my favorite recent watches. I’m a big believer in fun watches and, for all the flack that gets sent Hublot’s way, it’s impossible to deny the smile that creeps across your face when you strap on a giant purple sapphire tourbillon.

Today’s addition to the brightly colored lineup is a new limited version of the Big Bang MP-11. The MP-11 was first introduced six years ago (back when Baselworld was still a thing) and is no stranger to transparency. Over the years, the MP-11 has seen releases in clear sapphire, dark blue sapphire, and green SAXEM. This new release brings a different character to the familiar piece, with a brand new icy glacier blue sapphire case and matching rubber strap, complemented by titanium hardware, bezel screws, and crown.

The new color, which Hublot is calling ‘Water Blue Sapphire’ and releasing in a limited edition of just 50, is the result of a new chemical formula, and results in a color that seems to change based on the light around the watch from a pale blue to an ocean-like blueish green.

The Big Bang MP-11 Water Blue Sapphire is powered by the HUB9011 Manufacture Movement. The stand-out technical feature here remains the hand-wound 14-day power reserve, made possible by the seven barrels mounted perpendicular to the dial and the bulk of the movement.

The Hublot Big Bang MP-11 is, no way around this, big. But at 45.5mm across and 14.4mm thick, it’s fairly reasonable as far as extended power reserve watches go. And the all sapphire and titanium construction means it will be tremendously light, so the watch will be shockingly wearable — though not subtle.

One nice detail here is that the HUB9011 movement is not finished with any sort of dark coloring process, so the whole watch has a lighter visual look than most other MP-11 releases. The only other MP-11 to eschew a dark finish (at least to my knowledge) was the initial clear sapphire release. 

This isn’t the only sapphire release from Hublot this year, there’s also a new Spirit of Big Bang Sang Bleu in clear sapphire to be had, but the new color the MP-11 is a breath of fresh air. The whole thing feels like someone took the crystal Casio Baby-G watches that were everywhere 20 years ago and pushed the concept to its extreme. And I mean that in a very, very good way.

The Hublot Big Bang MP-11 is available through Hublot authorized retailers and their own online boutique and will be produced in a limited edition of 50 pieces. The retail price is a cool $171,000. Hublot