Luke Humphries has fired back after Michael van Gerwen suggested a rule change that would directly affect the world number two.
Humphries enters the 2026 World Championship ranked just behind new world number one Luke Littler, who overtook him earlier this month. The pair sit miles ahead of the competition on the two-year PDC Order of Merit, though that gap could tighten once the tournament concludes.
Humphries is defending a huge £500,000 from his 2024 World Championship win, while this year’s champion will walk away with an increased £1 million prize. Even so, Littler (1970.5 points) and Humphries (1572 points) remain far ahead of third-placed Van Gerwen, who sits on 681.25 points — with points calculated by dividing prize money by 1,000.
Ahead of the event, two-time world champion Van Gerwen argued the PDC rankings need to be overhauled, claiming the World Championship now carries too much weight in deciding the sport’s top positions.
“We all know the Worlds is the most important event, but it’s not balanced anymore,” Van Gerwen said. “They should have a points system. I say it every year, but I’m not the organisation. You’d need to ask the PDC.”
Humphries, however, wasn’t convinced. Speaking to Online Darts, he suggested Van Gerwen’s stance might be different if he were leading the rankings.
“That’s what someone says when they’re not at the top, isn’t it?” Humphries replied. “If you’re not me or Luke, of course you’d want a points system. It works in your favour.”
The 2024 world champion added that changing to a points format wouldn’t alter the current hierarchy anyway.
“I don’t care if it’s points or money. If it was points-based, we’d still be the top two,” he said. “I’ve made 15 major finals in the last two years. Luke would still be number one and I’d still be number two.”
