“Almost guaranteed top 10 of all time on pure ability” - Are fans overlooking Luke Humphries’ place in darts history amid Luke Littler’s dominance?

Only four players have won more individual PDC majors than Luke Humphries. A world champion and Triple Crown winner, he has already earned company among some of darts’ biggest names. But with Luke Littler’s emergence as the dominant force of this era, are darts fans overlooking Humphries’ standing when judging the greatest players the sport has seen?

On the DartsNews Podcast, host Kieran Wood challenged fans’ reluctance to include Humphries in historical top-ten lists, while co-host Nicolas Gayer suggested the timing of his career might be working against him.

“I think it’s crazy how many comments you see when people include Luke Humphries in their ten best players of all time, saying: ‘Swap Luke Humphries out for someone else,’” Wood said. “On pure ability, Luke Humphries is almost guaranteed top ten of all time.”

Gayer went further. “Absolutely. One hundred per cent, in my opinion. Even higher than that.”

Humphries had just followed his second World Grand Prix triumph with another final at the Swiss Darts Trophy. Jonny Clayton took the trophy in Basel, but Humphries averaged over 100 in all five of his matches, including a tournament-record 114.15 against Krzysztof Ratajski. A week after coming from three sets down to beat Gerwyn Price in Leicester, he was still producing the kind of darts that made the historical comparison worth having.

Humphries’ first individual major arrived at the 2023 World Grand Prix. Within months, he had added the Grand Slam, Players Championship Finals and World Championship, beating Littler at Alexandra Palace to become world number one.

His latest Leicester victory took him to nine individual PDC majors, fifth on that title list behind Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen, Littler and James Wade. Alongside those trophies sit two World Cups and nine European Tour titles.

The speed of that accumulation stood out to Wood, particularly with Humphries having arrived in Basel chasing a tenth European Tour crown. “When you think of Luke Humphries, he hasn’t actually been at the very top level for that long comparatively, has he? Maybe four or five years where you’d consider him a real top player,” he said. “To already be in that position shows him as the real force of the Euro Tour in recent years.”

Humphries won four European Tour titles in 2022, before his major breakthrough. By May 2025, he had become only the fourth player to complete the PDC’s Triple Crown of World Championship, World Matchplay and Premier League titles, following Taylor, Van Gerwen and Gary Anderson.

Littler was the opponent he beat to complete that collection. Humphries’ 11-8 victory at the O2 followed wins over him in the 2024 World Championship and Players Championship Finals finals.

Since that Premier League victory, the rivalry has become harder on Humphries. Before ending his wait for another major in Leicester, he had lost five consecutive individual major finals. Four of those defeats came against Littler.

Humphries kept reaching the biggest matches, but the trophies increasingly belonged to his rival. Gayer felt the timing of their careers had affected how Humphries was viewed.

“I saw someone saying on Twitter that Luke Humphries is still underrated, and I agree,” he said. “We’ve spoken about that a lot. It’s got a lot to do with the timing of when he’s been around, because we’re seeing one of the greatest players of all time currently dominating the game.”

Littler’s success provides a demanding benchmark even for a player with Humphries’ record. Reaching another final can look like more of the same when the player across the stage keeps winning them.

But Humphries’ Grand Prix victory required considerably more than taking advantage of Littler’s early exit. Price led 3-0 in the final, and Humphries needed a 105 checkout with the Welshman waiting on tops to prevent the deficit becoming four sets. He recovered to win 6-4, producing a ten-dart break late in the match.

There had been doubt among the podcast hosts over whether Humphries would even make the trip to Switzerland after his Leicester triumph. Gayer had picked him to win if he played, and felt the decision to return straight to competition paid off.

“I think it was the right decision. He’d won in Leicester, and it was a good idea to extend that good patch of form and keep the rhythm going,” he said. “Even though he missed out on the title, it was another great performance.”

In Basel, Ratajski failed to win a leg against him. Humphries followed that 114.15 average with 100.40 against Cristo Reyes and 111.17 against Mensur Suljovic, missing only one dart at double in the semi-final. “All weekend, I was getting the feeling: ‘This is going to be Luke Humphries’ to win,’” Wood said. “He was just playing darts from the gods.”

Clayton ultimately denied him 8-4 in the final. The difference was finishing: the Welshman converted eight of 13 attempts at double, while Humphries took four of 18. Their averages were separated by just 0.07, Humphries’ 101.75 marginally ahead of Clayton’s 101.68.

An all-time ranking still demands choices that a run of exceptional averages cannot settle. Humphries has won more individual PDC majors than many celebrated names, but that count alone cannot account for achievements outside the PDC, longevity or the different opportunities available across generations.

Gayer’s endorsement of his ability came with room for his career to develop. “The next few years will be about how much more he can win,” he said. “We’ll see how high he can climb among the all-time greats on achievements.”

Humphries has applied a demanding standard to himself too. In February, he suggested he might already belong in the historical top ten, but identified another world title as the achievement that would remove his own doubts. “One World Championship is probably the stumbling block. If I can win another, then I’d say definitely top ten.”

That leaves a reasonable argument for reserving judgement on his final position without dismissing what he has already achieved. He is 31, has completed the Triple Crown and has won nine individual majors since October 2023. His strongest years need not all be behind him.

His performances in Leicester and Basel have also given Gayer plenty of reason to look forward to the remaining major tournaments. “It’s good to see Luke heading into the business end of the season in this form,” he said. “It will be very exciting to see him battle it out with the other Luke and the rest of the world’s elite at the big events this year.”

Littler will continue to offer the most immediate comparison, especially when they meet in finals. Whether that comparison does justice to Humphries’ place in the wider history of darts is a different question. A second world title would strengthen his case considerably, but his first nine majors deserve to be weighed against more than the player currently standing above him.