The 2026 Premier League Darts gets underway this evening in Newcastle, with defending champion Luke Humphries setting his sights on a historic achievement.
Should the world number two successfully retain his crown, he would become just the third player ever to accomplish back-to-back Premier League victories.
Only Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen have managed this feat previously. Taylor held onto the trophy from 2005 to 2008, whilst Van Gerwen achieved consecutive wins between 2016 and 2019, then again in 2022 and 2023.
Humphries opens his title defence against Gerwyn Price, a player he believes is hungry to re-establish himself among the sport's elite names.
Luke Humphries won the Premier League last year and is looking to retain his title
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This marks just the third Premier League appearance for 'Cool Hand Luke', though he has reached the final in both previous campaigns.
The 29-year-old is driven by the prospect of adding another prestigious accolade to his growing list of achievements.
"I think it would mean a lot from the fact that I want to have these great accolades, these great things next to my name, do things that other players haven't done," Humphries told Sky Sports.
He added that joining Taylor and Van Gerwen in this exclusive club would "cement my name a bit higher up in the sport", describing both as "two of the greatest that have ever played".
Humphries believes the 17-week format plays to his strengths, pointing to his reliability rather than spectacular scoring bursts.
Luke Humphries beat Luke Littler to win the Premier League but The Nuke is expected to challenge again
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"I am a consistent player. You won't always see big 110 averages from me," he explained, noting that he produces 100-plus averages more frequently than most competitors.
The world number two has made incremental adjustments both on and off the oche to maintain his position at the summit of the sport.
"I have just been looking after my health a bit more, looking after it even more than usual to try and keep myself and healthy," he said, acknowledging the demands of lengthy tournament schedules.
His equipment has also undergone minor modifications, including additional millimetres on his points and stronger flights that "just seem to fly better through the air".
Despite being barely a month into 2026, Humphries is already noticing improvements from these tweaks.
"It is premature. We are only talking a month into the year here, but I already see changes there. I feel much more comfortable on the dartboard which is more important to go on and win more," he said.
Luke Littler arrives at the tournament as the bookmakers' favourite to claim victory, having defeated Humphries in the 2024 final before losing to him in last year's decider.
Luke Littler has been in incredible form so far this year, winning the World Championship and World Masters already
| PAThe 18-year-old, now a two-time world champion, sits atop the PDC world rankings and automatically qualified alongside Humphries, Gian van Veen and Michael van Gerwen.
Jonny Clayton, Stephen Bunting, Josh Rock and Price complete the eight-player field as wildcard selections from the PDC.
The competition spans 16 nights across venues including Antwerp, Glasgow, Belfast and Berlin, with each evening functioning as a standalone mini-tournament featuring best-of-11-leg matches.
The top four players in the standings after Night 16 in Sheffield will progress to Finals Night at London's O2 Arena on May 28, where the champion will pocket £350,000.