Brembo celebrates 30 years of the Superbike World Championship chasing the victory number 700

2/20/2018

3 bikes out of 4 at the start of the Superbike World Championship will be equipped with Brembo brakes: here are the trends concerning the braking systems for the 2018 season

Brembo, world leader in the production of braking systems for high-performance production motorcycles, will once again participate in the World Superbike Championship as the preferred supplier for the main teams in competition. Of the 21 bikes competing in the 13 rounds of the championship, a full 16 have chosen to rely on Brembo braking systems.

This season will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the World Superbike Championship (1988-2018) and Brembo is chasing down its 700th victory, further proof of the special bond between Brembo braking systems and the world's most famous championship for production-derived motorcycles. Holding a key role in the World Superbike Championship since the very first edition, Brembo has equipped the winning bikes in 684 races, which is 91.7% of all the races contested.

It's not a coincidence that from 1988 to today, Brembo brakes have ensured superior performance in braking for 27 of the motorcycles ridden by the World Superbike Riders' Champions and all of the 30 World Superbike Manufacturers' Champions. Since there are 26 races scheduled for 2018, reaching 700 wins seems plausible as early as this season.

For the 2018 season, Brembo technicians are asking the teams to focus almost exclusively on using 336mm discs, although it will still be possible to choose the 328mm discs. Adopting a single diameter aims to prevent the problems that arose during flag to flag races due to the use of different spacers.

In terms of thickness of the discs, four are the possible choices that Brembo will make available to the teams: Brembo expects that in particularly demanding circuits for the braking systems, such as Buriram (Thailand), Imola (Italy) and Donington (Great Britain), riders will tend to favour discs of the maximum thickness available.

In the remaining circuits, it’s likely that the riders are oriented towards discs with smaller thickness, even if the assessment of the most suitable thickness will be carried out with the long-run on Friday: after each session Brembo technicians working on track in close contact with the teams check consumption and temperatures reached with the thermo-virating paints.

In addition to the discs, calipers and pads, for which the research of increasingly performing friction materials knows no rest, Brembo supplies also to the teams the master cylinders.

About that, Brembo signals the increasing spread of the thumb master cylinders which allows to activate the rear brake by pressing a special button on the left side of the handlebar. Currently, more than 50% of the Superbike World Championship riders use it, but we estimate that the percentage is destined to grow during the season.

Finally, Brembo Group will be present in the Superbike World Championship also with the Marchesini forged aluminium wheels: a solution used by the majority or the riders competing in the 2018 edition.

Specialised in the manufacturing of sophisticated forged magnesium and aluminium wheels, the brand is one of the most prestigious of Brembo Group. The Marchesini wheels ensure weight savings to the motorcycles, favouring acceleration and handling in changing direction.