[The Last 1%] Brake pressure at turn-in: the key to corner entry

Optimum corner entry requires speed and steering, along with safety. Brake pressure at turn-in controls all of these aspects, and more.

Brake pressure at turn-in is one of the most poorly understood principles in motorsports, yet it’s crucial to mastering effective corner entry: it controls your straightaway speed, steering, and overall entry speed. Too little brake pressure at turn-in, and your speed and direction aren’t controlled. Too much, and you’ve overslowed the corner. Add in incorrect timing, either too early or too late, leaving your tires underloaded or overloaded, and you’ve killed your confidence in corner grip. Plus, it gets even more complicated when you introduce the hand grenade called “trail braking.”

In this post and accompanying video, I want to simplify all the above and explain the what, why, and how of developing proper brake pressure at turn-in to control your entry speed and direction, in order to slow and turn in less time and distance.