Peter Wright not thinking about retirement yet with major glory still the aim: “If I can reach 55 titles before I retire, I’ll be happy"

At 56, Peter Wright is one of the most experienced players on the PDC circuit, but the two-time world champion has no plans to retire any time soon. The Scot, who won the UK Open in Minehead in 2017, stresses that he still enjoys the game and wants to end his career with a nice round number of titles.

During the UK Open, Wright looked back with Viaplay on his earlier success at the same venue, where he lifted his first major title. “Yes. I think I’d reached the final of this tournament twice before. I’d lost to Michael van Gerwen, and then obviously he pulled out of the tournament that year, so he wasn’t in the final against me. So I managed to win it that year against Gerwyn Price, who was a youngster at the time. No one knew how big he was going to become. So yes, it was nice to win the title."

In recent years Wright has faced regular criticism for his inconsistency, but it bothers him less than it used to. According to the Scot, enjoyment now plays a bigger role than results. “Yes, obviously there are so many commentators and people saying you should give up and things like that. But I enjoy my darts. I enjoy the company of my fellow dart players. I still practise every single day, so I must enjoy the game and I want to be here. Yes, I’ve played rubbish for the past two years, but I still like it."

That doesn’t mean he has accepted a bit-part role. Wright believes he can still spring a surprise. “If I turn up, I can upset one of the big names now and again."

Where Wright was once known for his fierce drive, he now views his career differently. The need to constantly prove himself has faded. “That’s why I used to push myself and get upset when I lost games and be annoyed with myself. But I’ve got to think about how many players behind me, coming up through the game, have achieved what I’ve done. So I’ve just got to enjoy it while I still can. That’s the main thing."

Wright says that also means he gets less frustrated after a defeat. “Before, the next one would be in a day or two days’ time — maybe a Premier League Darts match or a European Tour event — so you were straight back into it. Now, after this tournament, my next game might not be for another three weeks."

Despite his age, Wright still has clear goals. He currently sits on 49 titles and wants to push that total higher before he calls it a day. “If I can still do that in practice, it would be nice to turn up, play well for a whole weekend and pick up another title to make it 50, because I’m sitting on 49. And 49 is not a good number."

He doesn’t care which tournament he wins, as long as he can add to his tally. “I really don’t care. But before I retire, if I could reach 55 titles, I’d be happy. I don’t know why — I’ve just got that number in my head. If I can reach 55 titles before I retire, I’ll be happy."

The fact that Wright has slipped down the world rankings no longer concerns him. The Scot feels he has achieved everything he ever wanted. “I wanted to get to world No. 1 — I achieved that. I wanted to be world champion — I achieved that at the PDC World Darts Championship. I wanted to win the World Matchplay, and I wanted to win the European Championship (Darts) twice — I achieved that. I also won the PDC World Cup of Darts twice for my country with two fantastic dart players. So I think I’ve achieved a lot."

His motivation has changed as a result, but it hasn’t disappeared. “If I could, before I retire, maybe pick up the Grand Slam of Darts or the World Grand Prix (Darts), that would be nice. I’ve lost in the final of the Grand Slam twice and the Grand Prix once. So if I could pick up one of them on the way out, that would be perfect."