Luke Littler may have 'reached his peak' already with darts star warned fans could 'get fed up' with him

Luke Littler may have 'reached his peak' already with darts star warned fans could 'get fed up' with him

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Lewis Winter

By Lewis Winter


Published: 02/05/2024

- 17:31

The youngster has taken the world of darts by storm in recent months

Luke Littler has been warned that people will get fed up with him if he continues to stamp his dominance on darts.

Former world champion Dennis Priestley has called the teenager 'the real deal' but wonders if he has already reached his peak.


Littler is aiming to cement his spot in the Premier League play-offs on Thursday when the roadshow heads to Aberdeen.

He is currently clear at the top of the table with just three nights remaining, having triumphed in three of the past five weeks.

Luke Littler

Luke Littler has been warned by Dennis Priestley that he may have peaked already

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The 17-year-old won his second European Tour title at the Austrian Darts Open last weekend, his fourth PDC tournament success in 2024.

He has taken the sport to a new level since he burst onto the scene at the World Championship in December.

Priestley is in awe of Littler's talent and even compared him to an alien such as his impact on darts.

But the 73-year-old says support can die down if he continues to dominate and has questioned whether we have already seen the best of him.

Priestley told OLBG: "Luke Littler is definitely the Jude Bellingham of darts. You can compare him to anyone at the top of their sport, whether it be football, basketball, baseball or any other sport. Littler has got it all.

"Littler is the real deal and the full package. I often wondered if they've released any aliens from Area 51 because he's such an unusual human being.

"It's remarkable what he's been able to take in at just 17 years old.

"Luke is something different. People do end up getting fed up of people dominating the sport though and we do have to watch out to see if he has already reached his peak.

"I just hope things don't get like football where players get too much too soon and Luke ends up securing a lot of money and then going off the rails."

Littler takes on Nathan Aspinall in his quarter-final in Aberdeen this evening.

His lead over second-placed Luke Humphries has been reduced to three after the world No 1 was handed a bye to the semi-final following Gerwyn Price's withdrawal due to injury.

Premier League rival Peter Wright says Littler can become the greatest darts player ever if he has the desire to play long-term.

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Luke Littler

Luke Littler has won three of the last five nights in the Premier League

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Wright said: "If he wants to do it, he could. But we don’t know what his plan is. He could play for another five years and say ‘that’s it, I have earned enough’.

"He has shaken up the sport. You see him in the back room and his routine is about five minutes practice.

"Maybe that's what we are all doing wrong - practising too much and wearing ourselves out.

"In the first or second week, I said to him ‘if you start losing, you can come to me for advice - because you will start losing’. But he hasn’t yet.

Luke Littler

Luke Littler is flying high at the top of the darts Premier League

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"It's what we needed. Michael van Gerwen came onto the scene just after Phil Taylor and raised the bar, and Littler he is doing the same.

"It is good for everyone else, to make us get our fingers out and practice harder."

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