Brembo unveils the 2019 Aragón MotoGP

9/17/2019

 An in-depth look at the premium class' use of braking systems at MotorLand Aragón

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For the third time this year, MotoGP is back in Spain, this time to contest round 14 of the World Championship scheduled for September 20 to 22 at MotorLand Aragón. ​

Located on 350 hectares of land, the circuit was designed by German architect Hermann Tilke in collaboration with Spanish Formula 1 driver Pedro De La Rosa. ​

The track was inaugurated on September 6, 2009 and it has been hosting MotoGP since 2010, the year it became the fourth World Championship GP race on the Iberian Peninsula.​

The track measures 5.077 km (3.15 miles) and is characterized by two long straights that are separated by just a pair of corners. ​

The Superbikes race here too, but they add 3 seconds to their lap times compared to the MotoGP bikes.​

The track is considered fairly technical and quite challenging on the brakes seeing as how on the first 2 km (1.2 miles) there are seven braking sections, which means the braking system has a tough time cooling down.​

The tight sequence of braking sections on the first half of the track puts the brakes at risk of problems. ​

According to Brembo technicians, who assist 100% of the 2018 MotoGP pilots, MotorLand Aragón is demanding on the brakes.​

On a scale of 1 to 5, it earned a 4 on the difficulty index, exactly the same score given to the tracks at Jerez and Brno. ​

 
 
 
 

The demand on the brakes during the GP

The MotoGP riders apply the brakes on 11 of the 17 corners, once more with respect to Superbike riders.​​
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On one full lap, the MotoGP riders use their brakes for a total of 31 seconds, two seconds less than the Superbikes.
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Over the course of the 23 laps of the race, the MotoGP riders use their brakes for almost 12 minutes, which is equivalent to 29 % of the entire Grand Prix. The average peak deceleration per lap ​​is 1.11 G.​

The average deceleration for the Superbikes on this track is 1.09 G. Summing up all of the force applied by a rider on the Brembo brake lever from the starting line to the checkered flag, the result comes in at more than 0.9 tons, a good 150 kg (331 lbs) more than the force required of the Superbike riders, although the Superbike race is five laps shorter.​

On a single lap, instead the MotoGP riders are required to apply less force than the Superbike riders because they use carbon brakes: 40 kg (88 lbs) against 42 kg (93 lbs). ​

 

The most demanding braking sections

Of the 11 braking sections on the circuit, three are considered very demanding on the brakes, three are of medium difficulty and five are light. ​

The corner that puts the most stress on the braking systems is turn 16, which is preceded by a 968 meters (0.6 miles) straight. ​

The MotoGP bikes go from 344 km/h (214 mph) to 148 km/h (92 mph) in 4.1 seconds while traveling 253 meters (830 feet). The riders apply a load of 5.6 kg (12.3 lbs). ​

They undergo a deceleration of 1.5 G and the pressure in the HTC 64T Brembo brake fluid reaches 12 bar.​

The gap in speed lost at the first turn after the finish line is slightly less: 198 km/h (123 mph), starting from 289 km/h (180 mph) and going down to 91 km/h (57 mph), and more time is spent braking, 4.5 seconds. To brake like this the riders need 219 meters (719 feet) and have to apply a load of 5.3 kg (11.7 lbs). ​

The Superbikes, on the other hand, put an 5.8 kg (12.8 lbs) and a 5.2 kg (11.5 lbs) load on the lever at these two corners, respectively.​

The effort required in braking at turn 12 is also worth noting: the bikes go from 274 km/h (170 mph) to 95 km/h (59 mph) in 208 meters (682 feet) and 4.5 seconds, and the brake fluid pressure reaches 10 bar. ​

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Brembo performance



Bikes with Brembo brakes have won all of the nine Aragón GP races contested up to now: Honda triumphed six times, Yamaha twice, and Ducati won the inaugural race in 2010 with Casey Stoner.
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In the last seven races, Spanish riders took the top podium every time. This is one of the few tracks where Valentino Rossi has never won. Marc Marquez on the other hand took the victory once in Moto2 and 4​ times in MotoGP, every time with Brembo brakes.