Smith spoke afterwards about Wright's run of form towards the back end of the game and admitted he let him do that.
"The annoying thing is that I let him play like that. I've got the darts twice and both of those times I play rubbish," said Smith post match.
"I was just targeting the double sets. I won the first two and then I broke him in the third double. That was 5-2 and 2-0 up and the rest is history I guess."
"I was trying. I never wanted to give up and the emotions just took over at the end."
For Smith though, he isn't done and will take another setback and fight again to finally achieve his long awaited goal.
"The first one I lost 7-3, the second I lost 7-5 so the next one, I'll be winning. I'm getting pretty used to these setbacks but I know I'll be back on the dartboard in a couple of days. I'm going to fight for it."
"I keep fighting, I keep making the finals and you can't lose in the final, if you're not making them. I played well, just the shots didn't go in."
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.
🗣 "𝗜'𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀"
We spoke to a disappointed Michael Smith after his World Championship final defeat to Peter Wright...