Proper application of front and rear brakes improves motorcycle cornering, but the wrong amount of force can be a disaster. This free guide from the best riders at Luimoto shows you when to use each and when not to.
A motorcycle’s front brake provides most of its stopping power, while the rear is primarily used to stabilize braking by preventing too much load from being transferred forward. Properly applying the brakes before turning into a corner and releasing them gradually until the apex is called trail braking, which makes the bike easier to turn. However, it is vital to avoid applying too much force, which can cause a loss of traction and lead to an accident.
It’s time for us to clear up a few misconceptions around motorcycle braking. The sad fact of the matter is that most motorcyclists aren’t using their brakes as safely or effectively as they probably think they are.
We hate to brake it to you, but it’s true.
So our team at Luimoto has put together this comprehensive guide on how each brake (front and rear) on your motorcycle work, how they work together, and when you should use each, both, or neither. We’ve also included a list of common braking mistakes to avoid so that you can keep your bike rubber-side-down on the street, the highway, and the track.
Looking for even more control when you ride? Check out our motorcycle tank grips.
Your motorcycle’s brakes use hydraulic levers to move fluid through the brake lines and apply force to the caliper pistons. This pushes the calipers against the spinning discs on your wheels, which creates friction and reduces your bike’s speed.
There’s a great video by Sabin Civil Engineering on YouTube that clearly explains this concept:
But your motorcycle’s front and rear brakes are separate systems that cause this friction to occur at different wheels. Due to the law of inertia, that means the weight of you and your motorcycle transfers forward or backward depending on how much of each brake you apply.
Your front brake is responsible for most of your bike’s stopping power (about 70% by many estimates, although it depends on your specific model). When you apply it, the friction created at your front wheel causes the weight of you and the rest of your bike to travel forward.
This weight transfer causes your bike’s front suspension to compress, which reduces your steering rake and trail. When this happens, your bike becomes easier to turn.
Applying the front brake also puts additional pressure on your front tire, compressing it against the ground and making the contact patch on your front tire larger. This increases the amount of grip your front tire has on the road surface.
That means the right amount of front brake pressure can make your bike much easier to both turn and stop. But too much can have disastrous consequences.
Squeezing the front brake too much when the wheel is turned can cause it to grip the pavement too much and lock up. When this happens, the front wheel stops but the rest of your bike continues moving, often resulting in a high-side accident.
Applying the front brake too quickly when the bike is leaned over doesn’t give the front tire time to compress properly before your bike’s weight is transferred forward. This often causes the front tire to lose traction and slide out, resulting in a low-side.
Your rear brake is nowhere near as powerful as your front brake, but it’s still critically important.
When you apply the rear brake, braking force is created at the back wheel, preventing all of your weight from moving to the front of the motorcycle while stopping or slowing down.
Used properly, this can give you extra control during low-speed maneuvers, corner entry, and trail braking.
However, since the bike’s weight is always shifting forward to some extent under hard braking, the rear wheel has less available traction than the front. That also means it takes much less brake pressure to overwhelm it. If you stomp on the rear brake at speed, the wheel can lose traction and slide, especially on slippery surfaces or when the bike is leaned over.
The key is finesse. Your rear brake is not there to replace the front brake, but it is there to support it. Riders who learn how to blend both brakes properly are better at cornering, emergency stopping, and riding in a much wider range of conditions.
For more on using the rear brake effectively, check out this YouTube video by Canyon Chasers:
Yes, you read that right.
A lot of new riders are taught that all braking must be finished before turn-in. While that’s a decent beginner safety rule in the sense that it prevents abrupt mid-corner inputs, it can also create a bad habit: coasting into corners with no way to adjust speed once you’re committed.
In the real world, corners tighten, visibility changes, and your entry speed isn’t always perfect. This is where trail braking comes in.
Trail braking means carrying a small, controlled amount of brake pressure (usually front brake, sometimes with light rear brake support) past turn-in and gradually releasing it as lean angle increases.
Done properly, this helps keep load on the front tire, improves front-end feel, and gives you more control over your speed and line as you enter the corner. Here’s a YouTube video from Chaos Causes showing how it looks in real life:
The important part is how you do it:
Remember, trail braking is not “braking hard while leaned over.” It’s a smooth, progressive technique: brake in a straight line, begin turn-in, then gently taper off brake pressure as the bike leans and approaches the apex.
As with most motorcycling maneuvers, abrupt inputs are what cause problems. Smooth inputs can make trail braking a powerful skill for riders (especially on the track).
Abruptly grabbing the front lever instead of using a progressive squeeze asks the front tire for a huge amount of grip all at once, before the suspension has time to compress or the tire’s contact patch has fully changed. If the available traction isn’t there yet (or the road is slick), the tire slides instead and you go down.
Proper front brake application requires progressive pressure. You want to load the tire and suspension incrementally. Think of it like pulling in the brake lever instead of snatching it. This gives the front end time to settle, increases available grip, and dramatically improves control.
Some riders use the front brake only and never develop rear brake control at all. Only using the front brake can still help you stop quickly, but braking often becomes harsher and your weight will transfer more abruptly. If you only know how to use your front brake effectively, you also won’t be able to use the rear brake to save yourself if you’ve loaded up the front too much in a corner as described above.
Many riders fear the front brake and rely too much on the rear, neglecting the stopping power provided by the front. But using only the rear brake results in much longer stopping distances and increases the risk of a rear-wheel skid.
Not closing the throttle before braking forces the brakes to fight the engine's power, reducing effectiveness. And applying power to the rear wheel while you’re in a corner is a very easy way to make the tire spin out, since the contact patch is narrower at an angle. This is especially true if most of your weight is on the front tire (meaning the rear is lighter and has less grip on the road surface).
Not adjusting braking pressure when you’re riding across slippery surfaces like gravel, wet pavement, or oil can lead to immediate loss of traction. Smooth inputs are a must at all times, but especially in these situations.
Tensing up and holding all weight on the handlebars rather than gripping the tank with legs makes the bike unstable during heavy braking. To learn more about the importance of gripping the tank, check out this other article from our team: Why Pretty Much All Race Bikes Have Tank Grips.
Good braking is part technique and part planning. If you want more confidence in the saddle, you need to work on both. Here’s how:
These other guides from Luimoto’s team can help you take your riding skills even further:
One of the biggest tells that a rider lacks experience is that they see the brakes as an impediment to more exciting riding. In reality, braking opens up the full potential of your motorcycle and allows you to make every ride much more exciting as long as you’re doing it properly.
Good braking helps you set the right speed before corners, load the suspension properly going into them, improve your grip, and hold cleaner lines. It’s not the thing that ruins the fun. It’s one of the skills that makes the fun possible.
Use what you’ve learned above to keep honing your ablities. And for even more ways to enhance your riding experience, check out Luimoto’s collection of premum aftermarket seat covers, tank grips, weather protectors, and more.
