Surprise! Red Bull's Marko Now a Believer in Halo Protective Device for F1 drivers

Red Bull Racing advisor Helmut Marko admits he was wrong about Formula 1's cockpit protection innovation commonly known as Halo.

When the Halo was made mandatory for 2018 and beyond, Red Bull's top official was vehemently opposed. But although he rejects that Max Verstappen collided with Lewis Hamilton deliberately at Monza, he says the incident shows that he was wrong about Halo.

Formula 1 has just published new driver-facing onboard footage of the incident that shows how Hamilton's head was indeed impacted by the rear wheel of Verstappen's Red Bull.

"I was sceptical at first," Marko told Osterreich newspaper. "But even I have to admit—just like in the (Grosjean) fire accident, the Halo was decisive in ensuring that things turned out so well."

Another new Halo advocate is the late Niki Lauda's son, former racing driver Mathias Lauda.