Luke Littler insists he has never shied away from the pressure moments, declaring that he always 'backs himself' after winning a nail-biting final to claim the Flanders Darts Trophy in Antwerp on Sunday.
The 18-year-old edged Northern Ireland’s Josh Rock 8-7 in a dramatic decider to secure his fourth European Tour crown and his fifth ranking title of the season.
Despite Rock’s spectacular 161 checkout that threatened to turn the match on its head, Littler produced a nerveless 11-darter in the final leg to seal victory and underline his growing reputation as one of the sport’s deadliest finishers under pressure.
“I think I started off okay, I wasn’t the quickest away, my cover shooting, my doubles, they all went well,” Littler reflected afterwards.
Luke Littler insists he has never shied away from the pressure moments, declaring that he always 'backs himself' after winning a nail-biting final to claim the Flanders Darts Trophy in Antwerp on Sunday
|“When Josh [Rock] hit the 161 checkout, it wasn’t a good feeling, but then I knew all I had to do was break the throw and win the game.
"Ever since I started playing darts I have always loved a last-leg decider. I back myself with or without the darts, but I knew I had to go out in eleven there.”
That self-belief has been central to Littler’s meteoric rise.
Having only made his European Tour debut last year, the teenager has already lifted four titles in just 11 appearances.
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Three of those have come on Belgian soil, where he has become something of a fan favourite.
“The European Tour stage, I love it,” he said.
“I love coming here [to Belgium] and I’ve said for the past year now that we need a Premier League event here.
"They love me here, I love them. They wanted Josh to win for a bit in that game, but for myself I had to crawl back from 4-1 down, then I knew they’d get back on my side.”
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LITTLER IS THE 2025 BLAKLADER FLANDERS DARTS TROPHY CHAMPION! 🏆
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) August 31, 2025
Luke Littler is brilliant once again as he beats Josh Rock in a last-leg decider to pick up his second title in Belgium this year, crowning himself the champion in Antwerp!
📺 https://t.co/YyBPPwoMK8#ET10 pic.twitter.com/76bhfc09h6
The final itself was a rollercoaster.
Rock, fresh from winning the World Cup of Darts alongside Daryl Gurney, stormed into a 4-1 lead with clinical scoring.
But Littler dug deep, winning five of the next six legs to flip the match in his favour.
Even when Rock produced that sensational 161 finish to level at 7-7, the world champion never panicked – responding with the kind of ruthless composure that has already become his trademark.
Littler’s success in Antwerp adds to an already stellar 2025 season.
With five ranking trophies in the bag, he now heads into the autumn period full of confidence and braced for one of the busiest stretches of the calendar.
“This is it now,” he said.
“From now it’s back-to-back with tournaments.
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Luke Littler continues to shine with the darts star looking forward to the autumn
| Pa"September and October are some of the craziest months of the calendar.
"I know how to deal with that and know what’s coming up.”