"I believe if I lose a lot of weight, I probably would win stuff" - Ricky Evans hoping to emulate Luke Humphries with weight loss route to darting success

Ricky Evans qualified for the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship by the skin of his teeth. The 34-year-old Englishman only managed to secure his ticket to Alexandra Palace at the last minute. 'Rapid' will begin the World Darts Championship on Wednesday, December 18. In the first round he will take on Australian Gordon Mathers. If he wins, a duel with sixth seed Dave Chisnall will follow.

Evans has never got past the third round in nine previous appearances at the World Darts Championship, which was also his finish last year following a 4-2 defeat to Daryl Gurney. Nevertheless, Evans also has fond memories of Alexandra Palace, where he has often taken the stage in special Christmas outfits in the past.

"I'll probably bring some props with me to the Ally Pally. If it gets some people on my side, you never know, I might need them in a final set," Evans laughs in conversation with Online Darts. "I'm always excited to go back. I always say every year, it's just about getting to the Ally Pally and obviously I scraped through having just done enough."

"It’s probably been one of the best years I've played personally. It's just the results haven't gone and it just testament to everyone else, because the standards are mental these days," the lighting quick thrower continues. "I'm losing 6-5 with 96 averages and I got to that stage in tournaments, where I was thinking if I ease off a couple of legs, my average was lower and I might win. Genuinely, it was getting in my head and messing my head up."

Evans sees another reason preventing him from achieving success. "I believe if I lose a lot of weight, a few shirt sizes, I probably would win stuff. It's a long day them Pro Tours and when I do get back to the Europeans, and that is the goal, the. final days on the European Tours, you're playing four games a night," he explains. "I come off stage and I'm sweating. Look at Luke Humphries, he's lost so much and he never seems to have a bead of sweat on his head. It's just, maybe if I lost a little bit of weight, did the right things at the right times away from darts, then maybe that will help me."