"The World Championships is a massive goal... I have the game in me" - Stephen Bunting's ambition not dampened by difficult few months

Stephen Bunting started the new year with a bang. After reaching the semi-finals of the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship, he went on to win the Bahrain Darts Masters and also made it to the final of the Dutch Darts Masters. Since then, however, things have taken a downturn for the 39-year-old Englishman, who has now lost seven straight matches in the Premier League Darts.

Bunting, however, remains wildly ambitious. "The World Championships is a massive goal for me to win. I’m not getting any younger, so I would love to win it as soon as I can. I have the game in me," says the former Lakeside champion on his YouTube channel. “I want to get into the top five in the world and try and pick up some more majors on the way. Also, to consolidate my Pro Tour and European form."

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Bunting also does not immediately start doubting after a few lesser performances, he has learned from his experiences early in his career. "There has been a lot of ups and downs along the way. Obviously, it has been well documented I have seen sports psychologists and hypnotherapists," he says. “I still see a hypnotherapist now for my sleep and for really helping thinking positive all the time. I like to keep on top of the hypnotherapy once a week. Just the sleep more than anything because the tour can be very tiring. So if I can keep on top of my sleep, I can wake up, feel fresh and ready."

"Even when I was under the weather at the World Masters I still felt really good, calm and collected," Bunting continues. “Which is something I never did when I was younger.”

Stephen Bunting in action

Bunting finally broke through in 2014 when he became world champion with the BDO at the Lakeside. "The BDO we used to be more jokey and family. Whereas now in the PDC we are playing for that much money it’s a lot more serious," he compares.

"Daryl Fitton, when I was on the tour, always looked after me. I went to Malaysia for the World Youth and I was with the likes of Martin Adams and Andy Fordham who really looked after me," recalls Bunting of his BDO days. "Just making me feel welcome into the England squad. They helped me settle in, and I ended up winning the World Youth title.” 

Looking ahead, Bunting remains optimistic that he will reach new heights this year. "Reaching the semi-finals of the Worlds and to play Luke Littler was an unbelievable feeling. I had some really good performances there. At the Masters, I had a good run to the quarters and played well. But it was always going to be difficult to defend my title," The Bullet assesses. “Winning the Bahrain Masters was a great feeling. To beat Gerwyn Price in the final and Luke Humphries in the semi-final, I had a really good run. It’s given me a lot of confidence heading into the rest of the season. At the Dutch Masters, losing out in the final to Rob Cross but along the way beating Luke Littler kept my spirits and confidence really high.”

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