Luke Littler: From Walk-On to World No. 1 – A Journey of Remarkable Dominance
LUKE LITTLER was greeted with enthusiastic applause at Minehead during his debut as the world No.1, featuring a new element in his walk-on routine.
The Nuke achieved this top ranking by defeating rival Luke Humphries in the Grand Slam of Darts final in Wolverhampton last week.
Littler celebrated his eighth consecutive tournament win by defeating Jeffrey de Graaf at Butlins on Friday, relishing the experience of being introduced as the new ranking leader.
He shared his sentiments: “It felt absolutely amazing. Probably one of the best experiences I’ve had.
“Being both the world champion and world No.1 simultaneously is a tremendous accomplishment. I’m excited for what’s next.”
This subtle modification to his already renowned walk-on left a lasting mark.
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Littler entered to Pitbull’s Greenlight, still reveling in the glory of being crowned world No.1.
As he approached the stage through the crowd, he heard the announcer state: “First, let’s welcome the global sensation.
“The World Matchplay victor and two-time Grand Slam champion.
“He is the reigning world champion and the NEW world number one, Luke ‘the Nuke’ Littler!”
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Hearing his name linked with ‘world number one’ for the first time, Littler stepped into the spotlight, accompanied by security.
With outstretched arms to engage with a few lucky fans, the teenager was greeted with warm applause.
He took a moment to sign autographs while passing in front of thousands of eager supporters.
Encouraging the crowd to join in applause, Littler completely embraced the atmosphere.
He then quickly dispatched De Graaf, celebrating further as Humphries faced an unexpected exit before the upcoming Ally Pally.
The two-time defending champion, Cool Hand Luke, also encountered a narrow 6-5 loss to Gian van Veen in Minehead.
The European champion, Van Veen, 23, made a stunning comeback from a 3-0 deficit and later a 4-2 disadvantage to win, sealing it with his sixth match dart.
Humphries, 30, dealt with a trapped nerve while relinquishing his No.1 position to Luke Littler the previous weekend in Wolverhampton.
List of all-time Darts World Champions
Below is the list of darts world champions by year.
The list excludes winners from the pre-Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) era or BDO world champions.
This means Raymond van Barneveld appears only once – he also won four BDO titles – and Eric Bristow’s five BDO titles are not included.
- 1994 – Dennis Priestley
- 1995 – Phil Taylor
- 1996 – Phil Taylor (2)
- 1997 – Phil Taylor (3)
- 1998 – Phil Taylor (4)
- 1999 – Phil Taylor (5)
- 2000 – Phil Taylor (6)
- 2001 – Phil Taylor (7)
- 2002 – Phil Taylor (8)
- 2003 – John Part
- 2004 – Phil Taylor (9)
- 2005 – Phil Taylor (10)
- 2006 – Phil Taylor (11)
- 2007 – Raymond van Barneveld
- 2008 – John Part (2)
- 2009 – Phil Taylor (12)
- 2010 – Phil Taylor (13)
- 2011 – Adrian Lewis
- 2012 – Adrian Lewis (2)
- 2013 – Phil Taylor (14)
- 2014 – Michael van Gerwen
- 2015 – Gary Anderson
- 2016 – Gary Anderson (2)
- 2017 – Michael van Gerwen (2)
- 2018 – Rob Cross
- 2019 – Michael van Gerwen (3)
- 2020 – Peter Wright
- 2021 – Gerwyn Price
- 2022 – Peter Wright (2)
- 2023 – Michael Smith
- 2024 – Luke Humphries
- 2025 – Luke Littler
Most World Titles
- 14 – Phil Taylor
- 3 – Michael van Gerwen
- 2 – John Part, Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Peter Wright
- 1 – Dennis Priestley, Raymond van Barneveld, Rob Cross, Gerwyn Price, Michael Smith, Luke Humphries, Luke Littler
He will head to the World Championship
after suffering a first-round loss to Van Veen, who pulled off a similar upset at the World Matchplay in July.
Littler, 18, advanced to the second round with an impressive 104.46 average and is now set to face Ross Smith.
Post-match, he expressed: “I’m very pleased. It definitely felt good.
“I didn’t start out the best, but I kicked it into gear and got the job done.
“A 67 checkout is my preferred play; not everyone agrees, but I love tops.
“Everything went well tonight. I’ve always aimed for the 27 and tops.”
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He articulated his determination to secure his title: “Absolutely, I’m eager for this.
“It’s a title I haven’t won yet. I narrowly missed out last year to Luke Humphries, so I’m driven to achieve this one.”
