306 meters of braking at 660°C at the San Donato corner

5/24/2022

No sleeping on the Mugello circuit and especially not when braking. The innovative Brembo calipers for MotoGP and your motorbike

The first Italian GP since 1996 without Valentino Rossi but with spectators on the stands at long last. According to the Brembo technicians who work closely with all the MotoGP World Championship riders, the Mugello Circuit is a moderately demanding circuit for brakes.

On a scale of 1 to 6, it is rated 3 on the difficulty index, lower than the 4 of the other Italian track on the racing calendar, the Misano Adriatico track. The Tuscan track also boasts one of the longest straights in the Championship calendar (1.141 km/0.709 mi) which demands a powerful engine and, naturally, a top notch braking system so what you have gained on the straight in braking is not lost. Fortunately, the distance between the remaining 14 corners allows the carbon fiber discs to cool down.

Highly innovative Brembo calipers for MotoGP

Used exclusively in MotoGP, the Brembo GP4 monobloc calipers are made from a single block of billet machined aluminum. As well as having fins on the external body, it has an anti-drag system that uses a spring device to significantly reduce residual torque, stopping the pads and disc coming into contact when there is no pressure in the system.

This 4-piston radial mount caliper has a system that increases the braking torque: during braking, it generates a force which is combined with the force created by the hydraulic pressure of the brake fluid on the pistons. Therefore, with the same force exerted on the lever, the braking torque is higher than with a conventional caliper.

The Stylema caliper Upgrade for day-to-day use 

As well as increasing its race wins, Brembo supplies brake components to the teams and drivers who want to improve their know-how and test new technical solutions. Thanks to the experience it has gained in racing, Brembo has revolutionized street bike calipers which have remained the same for decades with minimum differences in shape and size.

Brembo Upgrade calipers stand out from those of other brands both aesthetically and substantially. The Stylema caliper is an example - it has a 9% lighter body than previous models while still offering the same rigidity. The average friction coefficient has increased by 11% and the brake fluid temperature decreased by 10%.

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A misleading 3 in a row? 

MotoGP riders use their brakes on the Mugello track 10 times per lap, for a total 30.5 seconds, amounting to 29% of the overall race time.

The hardest braking is between the starting/finishing line whereas there are 3 consecutive braking moments between turn 8 and turn 10 but none of these three involves a deceleration of more than 1.1 G. When summing up all the forces applied by a rider to the Brembo brake lever from the starting line to the checkered flag, the value exceeds 8.2 kg (18 lb), the same as the GP of the Americas and the Indonesian GP.

Over 300 meters (328 yards) of braking 

Of the 10 braking sections at the Mugello circuit, 1 is classified as demanding on the brakes, 5 are of medium difficulty and the remaining 4 are relatively light.

The hardest braking event is the one at San Donato (turn 1): preceded by a downhill section, the MotoGPs approach at over 340 km/h, with top speeds of 360 km/h, and start the turn at 97 km/h. To do this, the riders apply the brakes for 5.9 seconds and cover a distance of 306 meters. There is massive deceleration (1.5G), the brake fluid reaches 10.4 bar and the temperature of the brake discs 660°C (1220°F).

And in the video games?

To tackle the first corner in the Italian GP in the MotoGP video game, you need to keep a cool head to get the timing right. If you stand on the left side, you can see the marshals’ marquee which covers a part of the wall and is orange. The brakes should be applied when you pass the marquee and you should downshift to first gear. Move onto the right-hand side near the curb without going up onto it. Since the turn is very long, you must take your time before opening up the throttle to gain speed.