VIDEO: James Wade and Mensur Suljovic take part in remarkable pre-match arm wrestle during Players Championship

The match between James Wade and Mensur Suljovic in the last sixteen of Players Championship 1 raised eyebrows in Hildesheim even before a dart was thrown. What should have been a routine Pro Tour match began with a striking and hard-to-interpret moment between the two players.

During the warm-up, James Wade stared intently at his opponent while Mensur Suljovic threw his final practice darts. Suljovic responded by extending his arm, seemingly to offer Wade a handshake. What followed was a peculiar show of strength as both players grabbed each other’s hand and briefly pushed and pulled, as if improvising an airborne arm-wrestling contest.

The episode ended with Wade pushing Suljovic’s arm downward. Suljovic then started laughing, and Wade appeared to show a slight smile as well. Whether it was a joke or a subtle bit of mind games remained unclear, but the scene clearly left viewers puzzled.

From a sporting standpoint, Wade was not distracted. The 42-year-old Englishman won the tie 6-3 and kept his strong tournament going. He then took care of Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals, before beating Nathan Aspinall in the final. With an 8-6 victory, Wade crowned himself champion of Players Championship 1.