MotoGP, A third of the lap at Jerez on the brakes

The Jerez circuit is hosting round 4 of the 2016 MotoGP championship. Inaugurated in 1985, in 1987 it hosted the world championship for the first time before becoming, the following year, the permanent location of the Spanish GP, replacing Jarama.

4.4 km long, the Jerez track comprises 13 corners (8 right-handers, 5 left-handers) and a maximum incline, along the main straight, of 5.1%. Despite being a narrow track (11-12 metres wide), riders love it as it offers many opportunities for overtaking. The turns make up just less than a third of the track, while the undulating surface requires a very manageable and well-balanced bike, as well as stability in braking.

According to the Brembo technicians, Jerez Circuit is one of the tougher tracks with regard to the brakes. On a scale of 1 to 5 it scores a difficulty rating of 4, the highest of the season so far. The other Spanish round at Aragon has the same value, as do the tracks of Brno and Spielberg.

​Brake use during the GP - With one of the shortest start/finish straights (just 600 metres) and 12 braking points per lap, the riders are on the brakes for roughly 31% of the entire race. The Jerez Circuit boasts various fast corners (numbers 4, 7, 11 and 12) which need restrained braking. It's due to these 4 corners, with deceleration of between 0.7 and 0.9 g, that the average deceleration is just 1.08 g, while without these 4 the average value would be 1.24 g.

The toughest points - Two of the twelve braking points at Jerez are considered particularly tough on the brakes, while 6 are of medium difficulty and the aforementioned 4 of containable difficulty. The most complex is at Dry Sack, turn number 6: for more than 5 seconds, riders exercise a 7.8 kg load on the brake lever to slow from 296 km/h to 65 km/h. The Expo 92 turn, the first after the start line, is also tricky, with riders reducing their speed by almost 200 km/h (from 283 to 86 km/h) in 225 metres, with deceleration of 1.5g.

Of the 6 that are of medium difficulty, the Ducados corner, the last before the finish line, deserves a mention, as the bikes arrive at 223 km/h and brake for 4 seconds to slow to 70 km/h.

Brembo victories - Brembo brakes have won 25 of 37 editions of the Spanish GP, including the last 22. 16 of these were Honda wins, but the Yamaha won in 2015 with Jorge Lorenzo. Valentino Rossi has achieved the most with 6 wins in 500-MotoGP but the most recent was in 2009.