"It's too far for any player in the world now": Phil Taylor's World title record won't be broken says Luke Humphries
PDCMonday, 16 December 2024 at 13:30
Phil Taylor's record of 16 world titles won't be broken in the view of Luke Humphries who is the current winner and is eyeing up back-to-back crowns.
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He opened his PDC World Darts Championship campaign with victory over Thibault Tricole racking off nine consecutive legs to claim it 3-0 and he will now return after Christmas with the third round set against Raymond van Barneveld or Nick Kenny/Stowe Buntz. Albeit 'Cool Hand Luke' said in his post match interview, he thinks it will be Barney.
But now Humphries has new goals in his sights including James Wade's tally of majors but Taylor's is out of the question in terms of World titles for any player he said.
“I’m sat on six major tournament wins now; I’m not far away from James Wade on 10, who is the third most successful darts player ever. Fifteen months ago, I’d not won one,” he said after his win over Thibault Tricole.
“I’m not purposely out trying to dethrone James as third,” he joked.
“It’s too far for any player in the world now [Phil Taylor’s record of 16 world titles],” Humphries told SportsBoom.com.
“If I retired in 20 years’ time, what’s a realistic goal for me? I’d just love to get to double figures. It’s hard to put a number to it—I could sit here and say 20 and come nowhere near, but then I could go on to hit 40.”
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But while he will enjoy Christmas, he will be watching the tournament with a vested interest. “I’ll be focused on myself, but I’ll be sitting back and watching as well because I’m a darts fan at heart,” he said. “It’s hard to watch when you’re not in the tournament.”
“I love seeing new faces, people that you’ve never seen before, and this is why the sport’s great,” he said. “You’ve got so many global players. I met a guy yesterday from the Bahamas [Rashad Sweeting], and I’m really interested to see how he plays.”
Samuel GillChief Content Officer
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.
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