Braking Point

What is a braking point?

The braking point is the place on the circuit where you start braking for a corner. Permanent circuits usually have braking markers — boards at 200 m, 150 m, 100 m and 50 m from the corner. But the optimal braking point is individual: it depends on your car, your tyres, the track conditions and your own skill. Finding it and hitting it repeatably is one of the most important skills in fast driving.

Finding and refining your braking point

Beginners start with early, conservative braking points and work their way closer to the corner lap by lap. Consistency matters more than aggression: a repeatable braking point beats a different one every lap. Experienced drivers use visual references — shadows, seams in the tarmac, advertising boards — to hit their braking point to the metre. Trail braking then lets you refine the braking phase further.

How car and conditions change the braking point

A GT3 on ceramic brakes and semi-slicks brakes far later than a standard 911 on road tyres. In the wet the braking point moves forward dramatically — sometimes by 50 metres or more. Tyre temperature matters too: on your first lap you brake earlier until the tyres are up to temperature. A good driver keeps adjusting.

Learning braking points at ESC

In lead-follow sessions at ESC the instructor shows you the optimal braking point for every corner. You follow his line and take over his references. In the debrief we analyse your braking phase using data and onboard video. Learn from former works drivers — see the next dates.