Second-to-last round of the season for MotoGP, taking place in the Iberian Peninsula for the fourth time this year.
After three rounds in Spain, it’s now time for the Portuguese GP, which reaches its 20th edition — although the 1987 race was actually held at the Jarama circuit in Spain.
However, Portugal also hosted the Algarve GP in 2021, a season in which there were two rounds on Portuguese soil.
The GP data
According to Brembo technicians who work closely with all MotoGP riders, the 4.592 km Autódromo Internacional do Algarve falls into the category of medium-demand circuits for braking.
On a scale of 1 to 6, it has a difficulty index of 3 because, despite featuring 10 braking zones per lap for a total of 30.5 seconds of braking, only 2 are classified as High, 2 as Medium, and 6 as Low.
The toughest corner
Two Zeros to Erase
The most successful rider at this circuit is Pedro Acosta, with three wins — the first two in 2021 in Moto3, and the third in the 2023 season-opening Moto2 race.
As for MotoGP, Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio Quartararo lead with two victories each, followed by Jorge Martin and Miguel Oliveira with one win apiece — all achieved with Brembo braking systems.
Aprilia’s best result here is a 2nd place, while Honda has never reached the podium in the main Grand Prix races: its only top-three finish came courtesy of Marc Márquez, 3rd in the 2023 Sprint.
Miguel’s Move
This year’s Portuguese GP is expected to be the last for Miguel Oliveira, who is set to move to the Superbike World Championship with the team that has claimed the last two Riders’ titles.
The Portuguese rider will need to readapt to steel brake discs, which he has not used since 2018, his final season in Moto2.
The Brembo calipers in Superbike, on the other hand, are very similar to those used in MotoGP — from the aluminium construction to the monobloc machining, as well as the cooling fins, brake booster system, and anti-drag system.
Radial Debut at the First
The first edition of the Portuguese GP, in 1987, featured the 80cc, 125cc, 250cc and 500cc classes on track.
In the premier class, riders completed 37 laps, for a race lasting over 55 minutes.
Eddie Lawson came out on top with the Agostini-run Yamaha, which had been using since the previous year the innovative Brembo-patented radial master cylinder: with this system, the force applied by the rider’s fingers on the lever and the force transmitted from the lever to the piston act in the same direction, without generating friction. Its reduced size and more efficient lever action proved so effective that it is now fitted to many high-performance road supersport bikes.