One week after the Brazilian GP, MotoGP remains in the Americas but moves 7,400 km north for the thirteenth edition of the Americas GP, all held in Austin.
In the USA, the World Championship has also competed at Laguna Seca (15 times), Indianapolis (8), and Daytona (2). This weekend, Austin also hosts the first of the 6 seasonal rounds of the Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup, which has replaced the now-defunct MotoE.
GP Data
According to Brembo engineers, who for the 11th consecutive year work closely with all MotoGP teams, the 5.513 km long Circuit of the Americas falls into the category of moderately demanding circuits for brakes. On a scale from 1 to 6, it has earned a difficulty index of 3 despite having 9 braking sections per lap: 4 are classified as High, 3 as Medium, and 2 as Low. Each lap, riders use the brakes for 31 seconds, equivalent to 26 percent of the time, applying a total load on the brake lever of almost 37 and a half kilograms per lap.
The toughest corner
The toughest corner of the Circuit of the Americas for the braking system is Turn 12, thanks to the 1.2 km straight that precedes it: the speed of MotoGP bikes drops from 339 km/h to 68 km/h due to a braking action lasting 5.8 seconds during which the bikes cover 290 meters. Riders apply a load of 6 kg on the Brembo brake lever, experiencing a deceleration of 1.5 g while the braking system pressure reaches 12.9 bar.
The Bagger World Cup braking system
The Austin round marks the debut of the Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup. Brembo takes charge of taming the over 200-horsepower and 280-kg Road Glide motorcycles with a braking system similar to that of the Superbike World Championship: all bikes use T-Drive steel discs, featuring a braking band connected to the hub through eight T-shaped pins, finned monobloc aluminum calipers with four pistons of 34 mm diameter, and 18x18 radial pumps. Although carbon is prohibited by the regulations, the braking is powerful, adjustable, and consistent.
Valentino 30 and praise
Thirty years ago, during these days, Valentino Rossi made his debut in the 125 World Championship at the Malaysian GP, which at the time was held at the Shah Alam Circuit: riding the Aprilia of the AGV team, number 46 achieved the 8th fastest time in the first qualifying session and the 12th in the second, ranking 13th in the combined standings. At the time, the grid consisted of 4 bikes per row, so Rossi started from the fourth row. He finished the race in 6th place, 7.379 seconds behind Stefano Perugini.
The first brake of the legend
In all 432 GPs held from 1996 to 2021, Valentino Rossi always used Brembo brakes: in his first year, as his Aprilia RS 125 R weighed just 71 kg, it featured a single two-piece axial mount caliper with 4 pistons positioned on the right side, which acted on a carbon disc with a diameter of 273 mm and a standard braking band. In MotoGP, however, the calipers he used were two at the front, both monobloc radial mount, as were the 2 carbon discs usually 340 mm with a high mass braking band.