LUKE LITTLER has set his sights on territory no darts player has ever reached.
Even after a record-breaking Premier League campaign last season, the world No1 is determined to raise the bar again in 2026.
This time, the 19-year-old has a very specific target in mind: a 125 match average. That would eclipse Michael van Gerwen’s long-standing Premier League record of 123.4 and rewrite the history books.
And Littler has already worked out exactly how it could be done.
He said: “Well, as easy as it sounds, a 6-0 win with six 12-dart legs — that’s a 125 average.
“Then I would like seven nightly wins.”
Littler returns to the Premier League after falling just short in last year’s final, where he was beaten 11-8 by Luke Humphries. Despite the defeat, The Nuke dominated much of the campaign, racking up six nightly wins and finishing with the highest number of maximums.
Now, he is aiming to better his own benchmarks.
He added: “Obviously, I want to beat my own record with the nightly wins. I want to beat another record for myself with the 180s too.
“I want to hit a few nine-darters as well.”
Premier League stars are rewarded handsomely for perfection, receiving gold darts worth £30,000 for every nine-darter thrown — and the players believe more history could be made this year.
Gerwyn Price has already suggested that someone could even land back-to-back nine-darters during the campaign, an unheard-of 18 perfect darts.
Littler said: “I think Price said someone may hit back-to-back nine-darters — 18 perfect darts.
“The fans are in for a treat this year if it all goes to plan. We will take a few more gold darts.”
Victory in the Premier League would also place Littler among an elite group. Only Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson have managed to win the competition after lifting the World Championship crown.
Littler is keenly aware of what is at stake.
He said: “It is another list that hopefully I can add my name to.
“These are the sort of things that us darts players can think about.
“Things like that, with me as reigning world champion coming into the Premier League, and then I just want to win it for myself.”
Littler begins his latest Premier League campaign against Gian van Veen on February 5 — just 33 days after lifting the World Championship trophy — with momentum, confidence and history firmly in his sights. 🎯
Comments are closed.