[blue00gt]

Good brakes are the only thing that will save you when you get your car really handling well. The more speed you can carry through and coming out of the corners the faster you will be going when you get to the next corner. All this extra energy that needs to be dissipated results in overheated brakes, which will cause you to wreck in a hurry.
You are right about not using the brakes IN a corner, but if you are not using them hard going INTO the corner, then you are not going fast enough and are also not transferring the weight of the car to the front wheels as effectively as you could for turn-in. Of course if you stay on the brakes while you are turning in the front end of the car will plow and try to go straight, but that's not how you use the brakes. You should brake firmly while still going straight and start turning the wheel as you let off the brake. This loads up the front wheels to give them more traction for turning, but prevents you from trying to use that limited amount of traction for both braking and turning at the same time. You should turn the wheel smoothly to the proper position that will take you on the right line across the apex, and if your car is set up properly you should be able to make corrections with the throttle and not have to move the wheel at all until you are straightening it back out leaving the corner.
The later you can brake into a corner the faster you are around the track, period. Big brake kits have the benefit of stopping the car in a shorter distance AND not overheating so that they will remain consistent and not fade after hard, repeated braking.