Mercedes used Brembo rear brakes during the German GP

During the German Grand Prix of Formula 1, both drivers from the Mercedes team drove with Brembo rear brakes. The Italian brand had also supplied the front brakes for Lewis Hamilton during the qualifying session, during which the Briton experienced a failure of a disc, sending him into the tire wall.

After the FIA agreed that changing the brakes, switching from Brembo equipment to Carbone Industrie equipment, did not constitute a breach of the Sporting Regulations, it was planned that Hamilton would change the brand of his discs at the front and rear, and Rosberg at the rear only.

However, Autosport reveals that this was not the case. The two drivers apparently did not change the brand of rear brake discs on the W05 Hybrid: they completed the entire Grand Prix with Brembo rear brakes. However, it was an older brake specification deemed safer because it had not experienced problems.

Despite Niki Lauda’s statements during the German weekend, Mercedes has chosen to trust the equipment provided by the Italian brand, which has promised a detailed investigation into the cause of the 2008 world champion’s incident. A spokesperson also stated to Autosport: « We are calm because it was an isolated episode and because we will discover the causes that led to the problem. »

After the race, despite his easy victory, Nico Rosberg felt that the brakes remained a concern. The German driver had already stated that he suffered during qualifying, which the two major wheel lock-ups during Q1 seemed to confirm: [Saturday] it was very problematic in qualifying with the brakes and it continued today. So, it’s something we need to work on, it’s an ongoing process with different solutions.