The most demanding braking sections
Of the 7 braking sessions at the Red Bull Ring, the first 3 are very hard on the brakes, as well the penultimate, while the remaining 3 are of low difficulty.
The most challenging session is Castrol Edge (curve 1) since it is located at the fastest point on the track, despite being slightly uphill: the MotoGP bikes reach the bend at 312 km/h (193.9 mph) and then brake for 4.4 seconds to slow to 99 km/h (61.5 mph).
Riders put 5.9 kg (13 lbs) pressure on the brake lever and are subjected to a 1.5 g deceleration. Formula 1 single-seaters reach this same section at a slightly higher speed (331 km/h, 205.7 mph), but are able to enter the curve at 158 km/h (98.2 mph) and, most importantly, can slam on the brakes without fear of flipping over: braking only lasts 1.57 seconds and 99 meters (325 feet), less than half the distance (229 meters, 751 feet) required by the MotoGP bikes.
The braking time and distance are even greater for Rauch (curve 4), partly due to the downhill slope: 274 meters (899 feet) and 5.7 seconds to come down from 292 km/h (181 mph) to 85 km/h (53 mph).
Here deceleration is 1.4 g, while for Formula 1 drivers it gets up to 5.2 g.
The pressure of the Brembo HTC 64T brake fluid in the MotoGP bikes climbs to 11.9 bar, while it peaks at 12.6 bar for Castrol Edge.
Remus (curve 3) is the slowest on the track with a speed of 64 km/h (40 mph) on entry. Riders clamp on their brakes for 5.5 seconds putting a 5.1 kg (11.2 lbs) load on the lever. The comparison with the four wheelers is less stark since the F1 brakes are used for 2.59 seconds to drop to 84 km/h (52 mph) after braking.