ANALYSIS: James Wade’s remarkable consistency shows why he’s still ‘The Machine’

In a sport defined by peaks and troughs, James Wade continues to stand as the ultimate outlier. While darts has seen the rise of new prodigies, the dominance of Michael van Gerwen, and the unrelenting brilliance of Gerwyn Price and Luke Humphries, Wade has quietly — almost stubbornly — maintained a level of consistency that borders on the extraordinary.

According to data compiled by FEBsData, Wade’s yearly averages between 2019 and 2025 have ranged only between 94.56 and 94.77. That’s a gap of just 0.21 points across seven seasons, a level of reliability unmatched anywhere in professional darts. For context, most of the sport’s leading names have had seasons where their form has dipped by several points, reflecting the natural ebb and flow of careers at the very top. Wade, meanwhile, has remained unflinching.

2019: 94.56

The margins are staggering. Wade’s “worst” season came in 2019 with a 94.56 average; his “best” was 2021 at 94.77. To put that into perspective, the difference between his lowest and highest seasonal returns is less than a quarter of a point — the darting equivalent of metronomic precision.

Wade’s consistency has never been just about numbers. In 2020, at the backend of one of the sport’s strangest years, he reached the final of the Grand Slam and reminded everyone of his enduring quality. A year later, he turned that steadiness into silverware, lifting the 2021 UK Open — his most recent major title to date. It was a timely reminder that, even in an era dominated by Van Gerwen and Price, Wade’s ability to stay in the conversation for trophies was undimmed.

He has also continued to go deep in televised events, reaching finals at the 2023 European Championship, as well as the 2025 UK Open and 2025 World Matchplay, where only Luke Littler’s brilliance stopped him. His resilience in the later stages of his career has not only silenced those who wondered whether his time at the very top was over, but has put him back in the mix for Premier League selection.

In modern darts, players are expected to balance relentless tour schedules, global travel, and the ever-rising standard of competition. For Wade to not only endure but thrive in that environment, posting season after season of virtually identical scoring power, is a feat that should rank alongside his 11 televised titles.

While others make headlines for astronomical averages and explosive bursts of dominance, Wade’s brilliance lies in his predictability. You know what you’re going to get: steady, controlled, unflappable darts. It is exactly that reliability which has underpinned a career spanning more than two decades at the top level.

As Wade celebrates his 42nd year, his legacy grows not through reinvention or sudden surges of form, but through a relentless refusal to dip. In the history books, he will be remembered not only for the majors he won but for being the most consistent scorer the sport has seen.

And perhaps that is James Wade’s greatest triumph of all. While others fluctuate between brilliance and mediocrity, Wade remains The Machine — year in, year out.