The Richard Mille x Brough Superior RMB01 is a motorcycle with an exceptional aesthetic pedigree

Brough Superior build hairy chested motorcycles, the type of two-wheeler that wears its engineering on its sleeve. The company’s latest collaboration, following on from a well-received partnership with Aston Martin on the AMB 001, is this racing machine, the RMB01.

This time, the marque in creative cahoots with the now Toulouse-based brand, is Swiss watchmaker Richard Mille, itself no stranger to partnering with engineering excellence. The RMB01 is a limited edition of 150 track-focused motorcycles that have built to express the same levels of care, craft and attention to detail as one of Richard Mille’s chronographs.

While Brough Superior can trace its origins back to 1919, when it was the favoured conveyance of TE Lawrence, amongst others, the inspiration for the RMB01 goes back ever further. The watchmaker wanted a machine that evoked the spirit of the earliest days of motorcycle racing, especially in the USA, where stripped down ‘Boardtrackers’ were created to run the wooden-clad oval circuits of the pre-war era. According to Brough Superior, ‘the RMB01 pays tribute to the raw and radical spirit of these machines.’

The new motorcycle has an exoskeletal frame, almost insectoid in the way that forks and frame twist and turn, leaving the engine exposed. The mechanical complexity of the wheel hubs, brake assemblies and chain drive evoke the intricacy of a chronograph’s movements, while the minimalism of the streamlined fuel tank and seat make for a flowing, uncluttered top surface, all contained within a carbon chassis.

Founder Richard Mille worked closed with Brough Superior’s CEO, Thierry Henriette, spending 18 months evolving the design through no less than 12 iterations. The idea was to break motorcycle convention, creating a powerful machine with a sculptural presence without compromising function. Materials like aluminium, titanium and carbon are shared across both brands, as is the skeletonization of layered components to reveal inner workings.

Unsurprisingly, the instrument binnacle derives much of its aesthetic approach from the Richard Mille design playbook, with exposed gearing and meticulously crafted dials and pointers. Milling and machining isn’t just about creating exuberant form but also reducing weight. Paired with a 997cc twin-cylinder engine developing 130bhp and specially developed aerodynamic ‘wings’ beneath the handlebars, the RMB01 is designed to perform best on track.

The new motorcycle is being offered in three versions, Nocturnal Sapphire blue, Selene grey with orange details and Pearl of Speed, a pearlescent white with red details. Each will be hand-assembled at Brough Superior’s factory near Toulouse. Whether the end result will ever turn a wheel in anger, or simply ends up as an ornament in a certain type of bachelor pad, remains to be seen, but the collaboration is truly on brand for all concerned.

Brough-Superior-Motorcyles.com, @BroughSuperiorMotorcyles

RichardMille.com, @RichardMille