Formula 1 brakes must undergo extreme forces, extreme temperatures and operate almost continuously for two hours without failing – although that isn’t always the case.
During a heavy braking race, such as the Singapore Grand Prix, drivers will be on the brakes more than 1,400 times, coming to an almost stop from 180mph, putting the driver through 5G of force.
The carbon brakes will experience temperatures of more than 1,000 celsius, therefore they must undergo extreme testing before F1 teams will allow them anywhere near their car.
But Brembo can’t simply go testing with an F1 car to see if their new brakes work as expected, instead they use bench tests involving a high-speed drill and repeatedly clamp down on the brake disc to simulate the extremes of an F1 race.
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