Operations Centre, Brackley, UK – 1 March 2006. The Honda Racing F1 Team is delighted to announce a new agreement with the SEIKO Watch Corporation which extends its existing partnership to cover the 2006 and 2007 seasons. In addition to being the official Team Watch Partner, SEIKO have also concluded a personal agreement with Honda Racing F1 Team driver Jenson Button, through which Jenson will endorse SEIKO’s watches and become an ambassador of the SEIKO brand.

Synonymous with precision time-keeping, the partnership with SEIKO has been an excellent asset to the Honda Racing F1 Team since the brand entered Formula One with the team in 2005. The new agreement will build on this partnership which has proven an exceptional marketing platform for the SEIKO Sportura watch collection. For 2006, the Sportura series will be central to SEIKO’s marketing campaigns in its major international markets. The SEIKO branding will continue to appear on the Honda Racing F1 Team’s clothing, including driver racesuits, as part of the team’s Racing Revolution livery. In addition, from the 2006 season the SEIKO brand will feature on the pit-stop lollipop during Grand Prix weekends and also on Jenson Button’s helmet to reflect his personal partnership with SEIKO. Nick Fry, Chief Executive Officer of the Honda Racing F1 Team, commented: “I am extremely proud to confirm the extension to our relationship with SEIKO for a further two seasons. The association with such a technologically innovative company fits well with the Honda design led philosophy and we are already working on new designs with SEIKO for their Sportura range. We are also very pleased to announce the personal sponsorship with Jenson, who is a big fan of the SEIKO brand, and I’m sure his presence will prove a valuable marketing tool for SEIKO. This is a very exciting time for the team as we prepare for the start of the new F1 season and we look forward to celebrating our on-track successes with SEIKO this year.”

Mr. Shinji Hattori, President and CEO of SEIKO Watch Corporation said: “We are delighted to renew our agreement with the Honda Racing F1 Team. Both parties share a passion for engineering excellence and we look forward to building our partnership through the development of new products as well as through shared marketing programmes. We wish the team and Jenson Button every success in 2006.”

Notes to Editors: Since being established in 1881, SEIKO has been the innovator of several revolutionary time pieces commencing with the production of Japan’s first wristwatch in 1913 and including the creation of the world’s first quartz watch in 1969. SEIKO has also been the official timekeeper at many international sporting events since the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games including those of track and field, swimming, the Winter Olympic Games and entered Formula One for the first time in 2005.

http://www.seikowatches.com/

For information on the SEIKO Watch Corporation please contact:
SEIKO Watch Corporation
2-1 Shibaura 1-chome
Minato-ku
Tokyo 105-8467
Japan
Tel: +81 36401 3478
Fax: +8136401 3540

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