Luke Rosewell achieved solid results in his EBC Bluestuff and Yellowstuff-adorned race car
Luke Rosewell is competing in the 2022 Toyo Tires 7 Caterham race series with his Caterham Supersport race car.
Equipped with EBC’s Bluestuff brake pads on the front axle and Yellowstuff pads on the rear, he recently proved he was in the front-running of the championship at the series’ latest round at Kent’s Brands Hatch Circuit.
Rosewell explains how the weekend unfolded in his own words below.
“Round 2 took place on the fantastic Brands Hatch GP circuit, supporting the World GT Challenge in front of 60,000 spectators. It isn’t often you get the opportunity to drive the circuit, let alone race it, so we were really looking forward to it.
“Unfortunately, due to work commitments, I wasn’t able to make the track day on the GP circuit on the Thursday, so we only tested on the Indy layout on the Friday.
“Knowing that this setup only offered three of the corners we would be using when racing on the full circuit, we really focussed on the car setup through Paddock Hill Bend, as this was the most similar to the corners on the GP loop.
“We ran through some setup options throughout the day, bedded some new front and rear pads ready for the weekend, and found a very good car balance through high and low speed corners. We also finished the day with lap times that were very competitive, albeit on the smaller Indy track.
“On Friday evening, we walked the track, picking out reference points we could use when first hitting the track for qualifying the next morning.
“As we took to the track, we were in a group of quick cars, which was the complete opposite to Donington Park at round 1! As it happened, the group was fighting too much, so nobody was getting a clean lap in. After dropping out the group to get one last chance at a clear lap, we crossed the line in P7.
“It was disappointing as the car felt like we could have gone a lot quicker, but we were just in a messy situation.
“Things got worse after we were told they were deleting my fastest lap due to a track limit infringement. Knowing this wasn’t right, we reviewed the video and it was clear they had deleted the wrong lap. Frustratingly, you can’t appeal those decisions, so we ended up dropping to 9th.
“Race 1 started steady, slowly making up a few positions over the first 10 minutes. With the lack of power on the straights, all the moves were coming on the brakes. The confidence the EBC Brakes pads gave me made all the difference. We could brake later at every corner than anybody else, and we kept climbing up the order.
Eventually, we got a turn at the front, but three cars drove past us on the straight like we were stood still.
“Knowing we were going to really struggle when leading the pack, I was happy to hang around 2nd, 3rd and 4th, while staying within touching distance of the lead. With two laps to go, I moved into 2nd, and was just on the tail of the leader. Onto the final lap, there was a group of three cars for the win, with us holding second.
“After the long straight, I had to defend 2nd heavily, allowing the leader to pull a small gap. I was confident that around the GP loop, nobody could catch us if I kept a clean line. Trying to chase the leader for one last attempt, I bounced off the kerb with three corners to go, and dropped down to 3rd. Straight away, I had already planned to make my move at the penultimate corner, confident we were the best on the brakes there all race long.
“As soon as I saw the brake lights from the car in front, I dived to the inside, hoping the EBC brakes could stop me in time. Without any hint of a lock up, the car stopped on a sixpence, after 25 minutes of hard braking efforts. Out of the final corner, we were a sitting duck to the more powerful 3rd place car, but we held onto second place by 0.03s.
“Reverse grid saw us start race 2 in P8. This time around, we were a lot more aggressive on the opening laps, really relying on the brakes to make moves. We finished the first lap in P3, and were in the lead by lap two. As the race went on, I was swapping places between 1st and 2nd, hoping for a gap to develop behind.
“Eventually, we formed a three-car race for the lead, and built up a gap to the chasing pack. The lead swapped multiple times per lap for the next few laps, all while each trying not to hold ourselves up.
“Starting the last lap in 3rd, I made a late lunge on the brakes into the second corner to take 2nd. On the tail of the leader and knowing how important the run onto the back straight would be, I set up a deep entrance, but struggled to change down to 3rd and ran wide.
“With the leader now comfortably in front, my eyes were just on defending 2nd place. Going around the GP loop, I held on under brakes, but again knew I would be out-dragged to the line. Coming into the last corner, I slowed the car more than usual, so I could use my shorter third gear to try and punch out the corner. It still couldn’t overcome the extra power of the newer car behind, and this time I lost out by 0.06s.
“To be fighting in an older car, up against the newer more powerful variants, shows just how good it is on the brakes to make up the time lost on straights. Without the consistency and power of the EBC brakes, we wouldn’t have been able to hang in the lead group for so long, so a big thank you to them once again for the support.
“Hopefully we can go a step further at the next round!”
Image credits: Matt Sayle Photography/7 Race Series.
Yellowstuff Pads
A true winner all-round. It has high friction from cold, not requiring warm-up for street use yet when hot, the brakes just get better. High efficiency performance and race brakes for track and street use, fast to bed-in, great for street vehicle brake upgrade.
Bluestuff Pads
A high-friction sport and race material that now has R90 approval on almost all fitments for the EU. For USA and Asia markets where R90 does not apply, this compound is totally road safe and the perfect choice for performance vehicles driven hard on the road or track days.
