Only 7 braking points in the Saudi Arabian GP but you pay the price for any mistakes

3/23/2022

The new regulations also have an impact on the size of the new Brembo calipers for the 2022 Formula 1 World Championship

For the second year running, Formula 1 competes in Saudi Arabia thirty kilometers outside the historic city of Jeddah. According to Brembo technicians, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit is ranked as a track with a hard level of difficulty for brakes. On a scale of 1 to 5, it is rated 4 on the difficulty index.

Without any 90 degree corners, last year this track earned itself the title of the longest and fastest city circuit in the history of the World Championship: the average speed on the pole position lap was just under 254 km/h (158 mph). Once again this year, the race will be held at night time starting at 8 pm local time. This is another variable in addition to the walls alongside it which force the drivers to use maximum precision when braking.

A change of direction for calipers

As a result of the increase in wheel diameter from 13 to 18 inches on the new Formula 1 single-seaters, the diameter of the brake discs has also increased. The increased braking force required has also led to an increase in the size of the Brembo brake calipers made of aluminum alloy machined from billet and nickel-plated.

The dimensions of the calipers have increased on average 10% both at the front and the rear. A change of direction compared with the last few seasons. This year all the teams use 6-piston calipers at the rear too: the 4-piston rear calipers used by those who preferred their lighter weight have disappeared.

Calipers with internal ducts for road cars too

Even for stock cars, the size of the calipers and their hydraulics – i.e. number of pistons – are linked to the characteristics of the vehicles they will be fitted on.

Designed for those who want the maximum from their car, the Brembo calipers in the B-M family have similar technical characteristics to those of the racing calipers machined from billet. Machined from a single billet of cast aluminum, using a 4D technology casting process and with internal fluid channels, these calipers ensure outstanding rigidity and minimized deformation.

Have a look at all the advantages of the B-M4, B-M6 and B-M8 braking systems.

Very few braking points but 4G of deceleration

The Formula 1 drivers only use their brakes on just over one fourth of the turns on the Jeddah Corniche Circuit: the 7 braking points are spread along the track except for the last one before the finishing line and the first one which are the only ones on consecutive corners. Two of these last less than 1 second and for this reason, the drivers use their brakes for approximately 10.3 seconds per lap which is 11% of the race.

Both the total and the percentage are fairly low for current Formula 1 standards, as showed by the figures for the Bahrain GP which was held last week: 16.5 seconds of braking per lap even if the track is 700 meters shorter. However, on 6 of the 7 braking points in the Saudi Arabian GP, deceleration is not less than 4G.

Decelerating 209 km/h (129.8 mph) in less than 3 seconds

Of the 7 braking sections at the Saudi Arabian GP, 2 are classified as very demanding on the brakes, 3 are of medium difficulty and the other 2 are light.

The hardest on the brake system is the last one because the single-seaters come on to it after braking for the last time on corner 22. As they come onto corner 27, the cars reach 316 km/h (196 mph) before using the brakes for the 2.8 seconds needed to slow down to 105 km/h (65.2 mph). In the meantime, they cover a distance of 138 meters (150.9 yards) and the drivers experience 4.4G of deceleration.

And what about the video games?

To tackle the last corner on the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in the Formula 1 videogame, you need a cool head. You have to move over onto the right-hand side of the track, almost touching the wall, and start to brake when you see the 100 meters sign. As you brake you have to downshift three gears. You also have to delay coming onto the turn and take it on the inside so that you don’t lose too much speed on the exit.