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Footballer Marco Materazzi spotted wearing Audemars Piguet

Marco Materazzi was recently caught on camera wearing an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix, reference 26290IO — a limited-edition piece that sits at the intersection of haute horlogerie and motorsport engineering, and one that rewards a closer look.

The Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix ref. 26290IO was released as part of AP's sustained engagement with the world of Formula 1 and high-performance motorsport. The case is constructed from forged carbon — a material derived from aerospace and racing composites — paired with a titanium caseback and crown, bringing the overall weight down considerably for a 44mm sports watch. The dial follows the anthracite-and-black theme consistent with the Grand Prix series, with the signature Méga Tapisserie pattern pressed into carbon rather than traditional metal. Inside sits the self-winding calibre 3126/3840, a movement jointly developed with Renaud & Papi, beating at 21,600 vph and offering a 50-hour power reserve with a column-wheel chronograph mechanism. Production was capped at 1,750 pieces globally.

From a collector standpoint, the Grand Prix references occupy a specific niche within the broader Offshore family. They are not the most flamboyant of AP's limited runs, but they are among the most technically coherent — the material choices serve a genuine design philosophy rather than aesthetics alone. Forged carbon Offshore pieces have aged well on the secondary market, and the 1,750-unit ceiling keeps supply genuinely constrained without tipping into unobtainable territory.

Materazzi — known professionally as "Matrix" — built his career at Inter Milan and reached global notoriety during the 2006 FIFA World Cup final, an event that made him one of the most recognised defenders in football history. Retired from professional play, he has maintained a visible presence on social media, where his taste in watches has become part of his public persona. The AP Offshore Grand Prix fits the profile: serious, limited, and carrying enough engineering credibility to interest someone who spent two decades operating in high-pressure environments.

The ref. 26290IO carried a UK retail list price of £33,800 at launch. On the grey market, examples in excellent condition with original papers trade at a modest premium to that figure, reflecting steady rather than speculative demand — exactly the kind of quiet market behaviour that tends to characterise well-made limited pieces over the long term.