Formula 1 2016: the United States GP according to Brembo

10/20/2016

 An in-depth look at Formula 1 brake use on the Circuit of The Americas

The Circuit of The Americas will host the 18th race of the 2016 Formula 1 World Championship season from 21 to 23 October.

Located in the hills overlooking the centre of Austin, the Circuit of The Americas is the first track in the United States to have been built specifically for Formula 1. Former 500cc World Champion Kevin Schwantz and promoter Tavo Hellmund designed the track layout. The circuit was inaugurated in October 2012 and up to now has hosted four Formula 1 GP races and just as many MotoGP races. Compared to motorcycles, the single-seaters take about 20 seconds less to complete a lap, but you could put your money on them in terms of maximum speed.

One of the distinguishing features of the track is the impressive incline at the end of the home-straight, where there is an elevation change measuring 41 metres that goes from the lowest point to the highest on the track. It is easy to imagine the consequences this has on the drivers, who often brake incorrectly on the downhill stretch.

According to Brembo technicians, who classified the 21 World Championship tracks on a scale of 1 to 10, the Circuit of The Americas is in the category of tracks that are not very hard on the brakes. The Texan track earned a 5 on the difficulty index, which only surpasses the scores given to Interlagos, Silverstone, Spa and Suzuka.

 

Brake Use During the GP

In the four races held so far at the Circuit of The Americas, none of the drivers have managed to complete even one lap going an average of 200 km/h. The blame rests with the extremely winding track, as evident in the 20 curves. The brakes are not always used in the frequent change of direction, which explains why the time spent braking in the overall duration of the race is merely 17%. On the other hand, the average deceleration is the highest out of the latest third (the last 7 races) of the World Championship: 4 g, the same value registered in Melbourne.

The energy dissipated in braking is 133 kWh, which is equivalent to the hourly consumption of 133 rodeo bulls. From the starting line to the chequered flag, each driver applies a total load of nearly 78 tonnes on the pedal, the same weight as 150 Texas Hold'em tables with 6 players each and the card dealer.


 

Detailed representation of the 2016 United States GP with curves detail Brembo  
 

The Most Challenging Stops

Of the 11 braking sections at the Circuit of The Americas, 4 are classified by Brembo technicians as challenging on the brakes, 4 present mid-level difficulty and 3 are light. The most difficult overall is Curve 12 that the drivers approach after reaching their maximum speed: the cars go from 337 km/h to 78 km/h in 1.35 seconds and travel 127 metres, the same distance marked between the two curves of the Texas Memorial Stadium. At this point, the drivers apply a load of 187 kg on the brake pedal and undergo a deceleration of 5.7 g.

The longest braking section is at Curve 11: 131 metres to slow down from 298 km/h to 78 km/h in 1.55 seconds, but with a deceleration of "just" 4.7 g. The slowest curve on the track is the first, taken at 74 km/h, after braking for 1.37 seconds, which is necessary to reduce the speed by almost 250 km/h. Curve 6 and Curve 8 compete to secure the title for the shortest curve: 18 metres for the first (from 290 km/h to 226 km/h) and 19 for the second (from 224 km/h to 178 km/h), which measures less than 4 Formula 1 single-seaters placed in a row. Regardless, the deceleration at Curve 6 is 4.6 g and the load on the pedal is 99 kg.


 

 
 
 

Brembo Victories


The single-seaters with Brembo brakes have won 3 of the 4 editions of the United States GP races contested on the Circuit of The Americas. More generally, Brembo brakes have won 20 editions of the United States GP and 12 of these were with Ferrari. A good five of the victories went to Michael Schumacher and 4 to Ayrton Senna.