Luke Humphries has spent nearly two years standing guard at the summit of world darts — 682 days of icy composure, relentless scoring and title-carving dominance. But even a man called Cool Hand could feel the tremors beneath him as the meteor known as Luke Littler came screaming toward his throne.
The Grand Slam was the moment the shift finally happened. Littler toppled him from the No1 perch, then outgunned him 16-11 in a blockbuster final that felt less like a passing of the torch and more like a collision between two titans at the height of their powers.
And yet, despite reaching three major finals this year and pocketing the World Masters and Premier League titles, Humphries admits he could feel the narrative tightening around him — the sense that the entire darting planet was counting down the minutes until the teenage phenom replaced him at the top.
He told talkSPORT: “It just felt like the world was waiting for Luke to overtake me. There were no things about how I could stay at world No1. It was all about how Luke could get there. There were no graphs out there from the media saying ‘this is what Luke needs to do to stay at world No1.’
“I felt like: why aren’t I getting that chance to be like ‘this is what I need to do to stay’?”
For Humphries, it wasn’t frustration — it was fuel. He pushed back with steel, hauling himself into finals, producing the kind of stubborn brilliance that defines true champions.
As he put it: “So, I showed a lot of bottle, to be honest. I made three finals, I defended as best as I could, but obviously when you are against Luke he is a tough player to beat. The Gian loss as well, it didn’t go my way. If we are going on fairness over the last two years, I think he has definitely been the No1 player.”
Now the eight-time major winner begins his next crusade at the Worlds, opening against Ted Evetts — a man capable of venomous scoring when the moment bites. Humphries, though, is marching into Ally Pally glowing with belief, convinced another world title is well within reach after lifting the Sid Waddell Trophy in 2024.
He said: “I feel like my game is in such a good place. I feel more confident and I feel like I am going to start winning things. I’ve enjoyed the last couple of years and everything that has come with it. I’m just ready to push my career on and win more titles.
“I’m fully focused, and whatever happens in this Worlds, going into next year I am going to work on this new throw that I have adapted, and that seems to be working really well. I just want to try and smash it and win as much as I can to try and put Luke under pressure for that world No1 spot.”
And should he go all the way and scoop the sport’s first £1million winner’s cheque?
Cool Hand has a celebration already sketched out — and it’s pure blockbuster. He continued: “The hard thing is when the money hits your account you can’t just rip it all out.
Lamborghini Urus, the new one, is going to be the one. To celebrate I would put the trophy on top of the car, we need some heavy-duty tape!”
The Worlds are coming — and Humphries more than ready for it.
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
