Dom Taylor handed six-month suspension after failing drugs test during PDC World Darts Championship

Dom Taylor will sat out at least half of 2026 after he failed a drugs test during the PDC World Darts Championship in December. He has been given a six month ban albeit is unlikely to play until at least 2027 anyway.

Taylor would have to go through Q-School to get back onto the tour with 'The Tower' being forced to hand back his £25,000 in prize money. This handed Mario Vandenbogaerde a lifeline and meant he didn't need to go to Q-School despite 'Super Mario' preparing as such to do so during the last few weeks with the verdict being uncertain.

Taylor has previously served a one month ban following a failed drugs test towards the end of 2024 and the sanction in this second offence is in line with UK Anti Doping (UKAD) rules. He had won his first match at the PDC World Darts Championship and called it post match 'the biggest let down' of his life as he vowed that he was past it but days later he was suspended and the test happened prior to his win. So he was widely criticised for not heeding his own words.

He was due to face Jonny Clayton but The Ferret received a bye through to round three. Taylor posted on Facebook that he was 'sincerely sorry' and that his mental health had been affected by personal traumas with help needed. But he now won't be on the tour and perhaps given the discussion surrounding the case was handed a light sentence for it.

A statement from the DRA said the following: "On Friday 19th December 2025 the Chairman of the DRA suspended Dominic Taylor following the failure of a drugs test. Taylor was tested at the World Darts Championship on 14th December 2025 and returned a positive sample for a banned substance. His case was subject to a full hearing before the DRA Disciplinary Committee on 7th January 2026. He admitted the breach of the Anti-Doping Rules.

"Although he had tested positive in competition, the Committee was satisfied that the ingestion of the prohibited substance took place out of competition.

"The sanction available to the Committee is laid down by the UKAD Anti-Doping Rules 2021. Where a player is found to have breached the Anti-Doping Rules for a second time and the ingestion was out of competition, the stipulated sanction applicable to his case is a six-month period of ineligibility as at 10.9 of the UKAD Anti-Doping Rules 2021.

"Therefore, the sanction imposed by the Committee is: Accordingly, and taking into account all of the available evidence, the Committee were satisfied that Mr Taylor’s ingestion of both cocaine and cannabis occurred out of competition and was not following the commencement of the World Championship on 11th December 2025."

"Following on from this finding, the Committee has determined that as this is Mr Taylor’s second offence, then under these Rules, he must serve a six month ban in line with 10.9 (a) and 10.9 (b) of UKAD Anti-Doping Rules 2021."

"As a result of this finding, Taylor will forfeit his £25,000 prize money earned at the World Championship and move down the ranking list. This means that he loses his Tour Card. He was ordered to pay the costs of the proceedings."