Early versus late apex…Everything you need to know

In my 20 years of racing experience, I have came to realize that many, many drivers have got a lot of myths about apexes.

You know, in some cases, most beginners are thought that every corner as you know, a single perfect apex, kind of like one size fits all, but I really feel like it’s not the case. And most drivers can relate, every corner is going to require a slightly different Apex based on the speed of the corner, whether it’s a fast corner or a slow corner, based on the approaching straight, whether you’re coming from a high speed or a low speed, as well as the radius of the corner, the width, many other aspects. So in this guide, I’ll try to provide as much knowledge and shed a light on this controversial topic of apexes. I’ll answer to some of the most frequently asked questions. So let’s get started.

But wait, what is even an apex?

Well, an apex is defined as the narrowest point across a corner. It’s funny, because if you ask this question to most iPhone drivers, you will see that they will struggle to give you a proper reply, because an apex for most of them is something that they are being used to hit and chase since they were six years old when they started in karting. But they never quite had to define it, because it’s something that you just drive and you just feel it. But yeah, the reality is that it’s really the narrowest point inside a corner where you ideally want to hit to take the best possible line, but that narrowest point in a corner is not going to always be the same for every single corner. Some corners will require an earlier apex, which means they’re going to be hit earlier on into the corner, whereas other ones are going to be needing a later apex, which means later on in the corner, compared to the geometrical Apex defined by theory.

What is the difference between early geometric and late apexes?

So let’s start by defining what a geometric apex is. A geometric apex is basically the apex defined by line theory. So according to line theory, the apex will be at a specific point, but in some cases, it may be at slightly different points than that geometric point. Well, why? Well, because, you know, on the real track differently from the textbooks, there are many different things that are going to be taken in consideration, for example, the length of the upcoming straight, if there is an upcoming straight, or if there are a sequence of corners, for example, if there is some banking, if there’s, you know, elevation changes in the entry or on the exit. So there’s many different things that have to be taken in consideration. So the geometry Apex will not always be hit, and sometimes will be earlier. Sometimes will be a later. Sometimes it will be just exactly the same as the geometrically apex.

What’s an early apex?

Well, an early apex is simply an apex that is hit earlier on into the corner than the geometrical Apex according to line theory. So basically, this kind of APEX will be earlier on, because probably the exit is not going to be that important compared to the entry speed that’s want to be carried. So in this case, the driver will probably carry more speed on the entry than the theory, and it will turn earlier than in the theory. So that’s why it’s going to be called an early apex. He’s going to get to the narrowest point of the corner at earlier stages, rather than if he had a geometrical apex or a late ape.

What’s the advantages and disadvantages of an early apex?

Well, the advantages of an early apex is definitely carrying more entry speed, because you’re going to essentially just turn in earlier, release the brakes, and just carry more speed into the corner. So for sure, you’re going to be able to carry in a lot more speed at an expense of a slower exit speed. And that’s why that’s a disadvantage. Basically, you can’t have everything, but in some corners, you will not care as much about the exit, because probably you have a sequence of corners. Perhaps, you know you have another corner right away that doesn’t really necessary, and it requires a fast exit from the previous one. And so in that case, you know, sacrificing the previous exit does not make sense. And so, of course, it pays off to, actually, you know, get an early apex and simply sacrificing the exit, as long as, of course, the delta time between the whole section is faster because that’s at the end of the what we’re caring about delta time, that is our religion, basically.

Why do professional drivers? Often prefer late apex?

Well, I think that’s a bit of a myth, because it’s not true that professional drivers often prefer late apex, you know. But the ones who do prefer late apex are normally in very, very high powered cars, for example, such as Formula One, because in that case, you need to really try to straighten up the exit quite a bit. And of course, you need to make sure that your steering wheel is relatively straight on exit to go full power and have the maximum traction. But of course, that late apex technique is mostly used just in slow speed corners, because, you know, in medium to high speed corners, you will have to, most of the times go for an early apex, but it also depends a lot on the car balance. For example, if the car has a lot of understeer on the exit, then you want to have a late apex in order to make sure that you have the steering as straight as possible to go full power and not have any traction issue. Whereas, for example, if the car is massive rotation on the exit, and it’s actually very good for that. You know, you can go for a bit of an earlier Apex because you still can rely on great rotation on the exit.

How does the apex affect exit speed?

Well, think about it. It’s quite clear. You know, the apex position basically affects the rotation of your car. Therefore, if you decide to apex early by turning early, you’re going to give up initial rotation on the entry in spite of more rotation required on the exit. So in that case, if you have to go and do more rotation on the exit because you have turned earlier on the entry, and therefore didn’t make enough rotation, then in that case, you will have a worse exit because you will still have to sometimes slow down the kart and still rotate the car on the exit, which does not allow you to use all the traction available from your tires to accelerate in a straight line, ideally. So of course, if you go for an early apex, you are sacrificing quite a lot of exit speed, because you are asking the tires then on the exit to not only accelerate, but also to rotate the car, whereas on late apex technique, you are going to do most of the rotation on the entry of the corner, and therefore on the exit of the corner, You will be left with mainly just the acceleration part, which is, yeah, much better than you know, having to do the acceleration part and a lot of rotation. So yeah, that’s why there’s massive differences in exit speeds based on Apex technique between a early apex or late apex. So if you normally feel that when you’re driving behind someone else that they are getting way better exits. And it’s not just illusion of the concertina effect. If you feel like, generally, like you’re getting worse exit, or even in the data you’re seeing that you’re getting worse exits, then what you need to try to do is to get a later Apex stopping the car more on the entry, trying to, you know, induce more rotation on the entry, so that on the exit, you will be left with simply getting the power down and just thinking about getting the best acceleration path. Whereas if you feel like you’re losing on the entries and gaining on the exits, but you feel like still, overall, it’s a time loss in the delt, then the next lap, you have to try to carry more entry speed, turn a bit earlier, doing less rotation on the entry and having to gain massively on the entry, while still sacrificing a bit on the exit. But the goal is that overall, the corner is going to be quicker in this style than what you did in the previous lab with a later apex.

How does corner type influence Apex choice?

Well, it’s pretty clear that the faster the corner, the earlier the apex, the slower the corner, the later the apex. That’s kind of the rule of thumb when it comes to apexes, and you should follow it like your religion. But of course, it always depends on other aspects. For example, at the straight that is coming up ahead, if there is a straight or is maybe a sequence of corners, of course, if you have a long straight that’s coming up, then you really want to focus a bit more on the exit right, because you want to get good speed down straight. Therefore, in that case, you will require later apex, whereas if you have no straight at all, you’ll have the freedom to carry lots of entry speed and going for an earlier apex. Because you, anyways, don’t care about the exit too much. But of course, you have to pay attention at other things, as already mentioned, for

example, as the elevation changes or the banking. If you, for example, have a very banked corner with positive banking, then you will have to probably turn in a bit earlier to catch the banking, like, for example, turn one at zandward in Formula One. I mean, I’ve raised there two times in Formula Three. And I can remember very, very well that, you know, you had to turn in a bit earlier than normal, because you wanted to catch the banking. So it was a bit of an earlier Apex because of that, whereas in other corners where you add negative banking, you actually wanted to turn in quite a bit later because you wanted to stay on the lower area for a bit longer in order. To avoid, you know, getting into the negative banking, which actually would have given you less same with elevation changes. For example, if you know that on the exit you’re going to have a massive uphill section and the truck is going up, you will know that the exit is going to struggle, and therefore you will need to get a later apex, most of the times, because you want to straighten up the car and just get the best exit possible, because you know that otherwise, you’re going to pay the price. I mean, think about it, if you get a bad exit in an uphill corner, you’re going to be really losing a lot compared if you were on a flat corner on the exit, or, like downhill corner on the exit. So of course, if you have a downhill corner on the exit, though, you can, you know, attack a bit more on the entries, because you know that even if you have an earlier apex, the exit, anyway, is going to be downhill. So even if you lose a tiny bit of time spending more time on rotation on the exit, that it’s actually not going to cost you that much, because anyways, you’re downhill.

So how does the apex point changes during overtaking?

Well, I think it’s quite clear that when you’re overtaking someone, you’re not going to think too much about the apex, are you I mean, the goal is to make the overtake sick. But yes, I mean, you can probably assume that when you’re overtaking someone, you’re going to go for an earlier apex, and ideally, you’re going to be able to stop by the apex in a way that you’re not going to get switched back on the exit.

Why do beginners often take an early apex?

Well, normally, the beginners are taking an early Apex simply because they are breaking early. And when you break early, you are naturally, automatically feeling like having to turn early because it’s an automatism. You know, when you break then you feel like, at some point you have to start turning. And so if you have an overly anticipated breaking point, then you’re going to naturally feel like, oh, I have to turn. So then you’re going to start turning, and then everything is going to be bad, because then you’re going to have early breaking, which you’re going to lose time, early turning, which you’re going to lose time and bad exits due to the early apex and because you need to rotate the car on the exit. So yes, most beginners make this mistake, not only in karting, but also in race cars. So it’s quite common, and so the major goal is that they should start focus about braking later, and that’s going to automatically get them to turn later and therefore make a later apex and get a better exit. So it’s a bit automatic. As soon as they start braking later, then the later Apex will come.

How does car balance affect Apex strategy?

Well, normally, it’s a bit counter intuitive, but when the driver feels understeer in the car, they will feel like turning in early because they are afraid they’re going to miss a corner, and so automatically, they’re going to start turning in early. But when they feel that the car is turning well, they will naturally feel more tempted and more confident in turning late, because they are aware that the car is going to turn so they’re going to be more likely to get a later apex. That’s also what I have experienced myself. It’s very, very true. So anytime I have a kart that is not turning, I am tempted to turn in early, and kind of, it’s a survival mechanism in your brain. And yeah, so that’s one of the things to notice. If the driver is turning in early, most of the time is because he has not enough front grip. Or it could be just a bad habit, you know, don’t get me wrong. But if the kart has definitely a bit of undersea on entry, then the driver is most of the times going to turn in early, which is no idea.

How can drivers exactly know what perfect apex in a given call?

Well, it comes down to experience. It comes down to analyzing telemetry, and it comes down to watching onboard videos, and also by looking at the drivers around you on track. For example, if you see that, I don’t know you are driving behind the driver that you know is fastest on the track, and he knows very well that track, and you see that he’s taking very late apexes in some corners, and it’s very fast, well, then you will have to try to do that too. But again, remember that you have to break later, first brake later, and then turn later on Apex later. Yeah. So that’s a bit everything, you know. It’s a bit of a simple answer, but yeah, just make sure you are copying what works from other drivers. But at the same time, study your telemetry, watch your ombre videos, and equally, make sure you are walking the track, doing a track walk, and try to understand very well the common traits about specific corners, for example, altitude, so elevation changes as well as banking. So you can understand also, okay, it actually makes sense here to go for a later apex. And so it’s going to be easier to do it when you drive, or vice versa, if you have to make an earlier apex, you know. And also, of course, it really depends on whether you have a long straight leading up to a corner, or you have a sequence of corners right after so, I mean, you’ll have to be very strategic. About it. But again, you should copy it. What works? You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You know, if everybody that’s fast is doing a specific Apex point, you should not try to reinvent the wheel and try to be a lot earlier or a lot later. You know what I mean. So as you probably have realized, it’s very important to nail the apexes for each corner. Of course, it’s a moving target, because it may change quite a lot from track conditions, as well as car balance. It’s going to change quite a bit also due to elevation changes and banking sections. Of course, I mean that those things are not going to change on a track, but from track to track a corner that may look exactly the same. Actually, it’s going to change quite a bit due to other things. For example, if the track is very narrow on the exit, you will be required to get a later apex, whereas if the track is very wide on the exit, you will be able to go for an early apex, because, anyways, the track widens up on the exit, so you have more track available to just carry a lot more entry speed and perhaps go for an earlier turning in early apex. So yeah, there’s a lot of different things between track to track, so you’ll have to be very good at memorizing every single piece of the track, so that once you drive, it’s basically subconscious to you, and you know exactly what where to place your tires, that’s pretty much it. If you need help at selecting the perfect Apex points for a specific track you’re trying to master, feel free to hit me up for a private coaching session or for a simple onboard video analysis. If you want to, instead level up completely, then you can go for the six months training program where I’ll help you take your driving from hero to zero, and I feel like I can confidently really turn you into a very fast driver.

So if you want that kind of help, just feel free to let me know. But what I care right now is that you have understood this topic very well, about apexes, and that you can find lap them on track right away. So I hope this was helpful. I’ll see in the next guide.