Brembo’s data paint a profoundly different picture from the past with regards to braking. The new cars enjoy significantly less grip than their predecessors, resulting in a lengthening of braking distances and a reduction of deceleration peaks. Furthermore, charging the battery is king, so much so that in some points it is expected that you will only lift your foot from the accelerator, with repercussions on the management of the temperatures of the discs.
How braking changes
The most eloquent numbers on the new way of braking are those relating to turn 11 in Melbourne, which last year Brembo indicated as the most challenging braking section on the Australian circuit. According to the Italian company’s simulations, with the new cars we will go from 4.8 g of maximum deceleration in 2025 to 3.3 gfor a reduction of approximately 30%. The drop is a direct consequence of the lower aerodynamic load that the 2026 single-seaters release, especially at high speeds, combined with the decrease in grip of the Pirelli tyres, narrower than the previous ones.
All this involves lengthening braking distancesI always wait for help with overtaking maneuvers. In detail, at turn 11 the time goes from 96 to 116 metres, while the time on the brakes lengthens from 1.80 to 2.16 seconds. Furthermore, the equivalent force exerted by the rider on the brake pedal drops from 153 to 88 kg, but the reason is not simply the lower deceleration. The new technical regulation, in fact, allows the rear brake-by-wire system to amplify the force exerted by the rider by up to 20%, alleviating physical effort.
Less real braking
The most surprising finding from Brembo’s simulations, however, concerns the number of braking sessions. The Italian company states that at Albert Park the drivers will only use the brakes in 4 points, while until last year the simulations spoke of 7 braking points. In the remaining ones it is expected that drivers will simply take their foot off the acceleratorin particular at turns 4, 6 and 9, the entrance to the very fast Waite chicane.
According to Brembo, it will therefore be avoided to operate the hydraulic system from turn 3 to turn 11, for a period of approximately 40 seconds in which the calipers and discs will cool down considerably. It should be noted, however, that there is still no uniformity of thought on what to expectgiven that the Italian company’s simulations differ, for example, from the data published by Mercedes. The Brackley team says that at Albert Park there will be 6 braking sections where at least 2 g of deceleration will be reached, with peaks exceeding 4 g in at least 4 points. However, these are numbers to be taken with a pinch of salt, since each team has every intention of hiding their braking and charging strategies, not to mention that there could be large differences in the approach between the various teams.
The new brakes
The reduced use of the hydraulic system, however, does not diminish its importance. The best witness is Brembo itself, whose group, which also includes AP Racing, supplies calipers to 11 teams and complete components to 5 teams. The lower braking intensity facilitated weight reductionof absolute importance in a season in which the teams have still all reached the minimum value. In particular, the pump has gone from 400 to 350 g, while the brake-by-wire system has dropped from 800 to 650 g.
As regards the front calipers, which have been lightened on average by 2.5 to 2.0 kg, there is a diversification between those who have chosen the new 8-piston configuration and those who have remained with the classic 6-piston configuration, just as there is a dualism for the 4- or 2-pad architecture. The front discs are the only components that are slightly heavier than last yearwith an increase from 1.75 to 2.0 kg, mainly due to the increase in the external diameter and for some the thickness. There is no data, however, for the rear axle, where there is a great diversity of solutions between the teams depending on the strategies for using the electric brake to recharge the battery.
