The science behind WSB brakes

Operating at up to 600°c braking hardware and techniques are key to race success

Races are won and lost on the brakes. Without the optimum set-up riders can’t overtake, so countless hours and budget are spent on development. Italian specialists Brembo remain the benchmark throughout racing whether that’s providing the incredible stopping power of carbon disks in MotoGP or the steel disks on the roads or in World Superbikes and Bennetts British Superbikes.

While the hardware is important, the riders play a critical part too, but they’re all achieving that in very different ways. To find out who are the latest or hardest brakers on the WSB grid, MCN sat down with Franco Zonnedda, Brembo’s braking guru who been working within WSB since way back when Carl Fogarty ruled the roost. With the benefit of datalogging it’s possible to see exactly who is pulling hardest on the lever and where on the track they are doing it and the results aren’t always what you might expect. Being the latest braker isn’t necessarily best with four time champ Jonathan Rea sitting fourth on that particular list. Brembo’s Franco Zonnedda explains: “Sykes’ method of braking is to pull the lever hard, then release – and pull again, modulating the lever. Chaz Davies is very hard on braking but requires very little adjustment. Marco Melandri has small hands and that means he has less space between the brake lever and handlebar and for this reason cannot afford a problem as he has such a small range on the brake lever. “Many people think Jonathan Rea is the most demanding brakewise but he is like Fogarty, who would brake hard and then release. Rea does brake very hard but then lets the bike flow through the corner. He is like a machine. Every corner is exactly the same on every lap. Some riders are so precise and can hit the same braking marker with exactly the same brake pressure on every single lap. Fogarty was like that as well.”