Michael Smith admits he's not a Grand Prix fan

'Bully Boy' has never been at his best in Dublin. His best Grand Prix performance came in 2015, where he lost to Jamie Lewis in the second round. In all four of his other appearances, the PDC world number nine has lost at the first hurdle. On , he starts against Adrian Lewis. It's a tough start for Smith, but he feels safe in the knowledge that the same is true for Jackpot. "It's a tough game for him as well," Smith said in a interview. "It should be a very good game and hopefully I will get the win. Smith did acknowledge however that the double-in, double-out format doesn't appeal much to him. Certainly, his previous Dublin performances reflect that. "I'm not a massive fan of the format but it's another TV events that we all want to win," he admitted. "I'm playing well this year, but I've still not got to where I want to be. Van Gerwen is the stepping stone to where I want to be and hopefully go on a mad run like he's been doing." Smith is already on a run of his own - towards a target weight. The St Helens thrower spoke about the importance of pursuing a healthy lifestyle, even when on the road. "At the start of this year I felt like I had to do something because I'm getting married next year and after seeing my weight on the scales I went on a diet," he said. "I lost two-and-a-half stone since the start of the year after working out, not eating at stupid times, not having fizzy drinks, so health is a main factor. If you're healthy, then your mind is healthy as well. "You see former players retire way too early through illness or just not being healthy because the body can't take it anymore. When Wayne Mardle retired, you don't realise that he is actually younger than Gary Anderson and he's been retired for about five or six years. Look at Wayne now, he's got healthy and lost loads of weight."