Really looking forward to the World Grand Prix starting tomorrow. The practice is all complete, the confidence is high from recent form and the excitement is bubbling up nicely. Full suitcase packed for a long week, the trusty darts are here with me and lastly to all my fans it’s…
"What you see with me is what you get" - Stephen Bunting has explanation for his enormous popularity
PDCMonday, 07 October 2024 at 06:00
Stephen Bunting may not be number one in the world in the official world rankings, but he is number one with fans, he even has his own hashtag "Let's Go Bunting Mental.
Bunting became wildly popular on social media because of the many funny videos he posted. "It was a bit of a joke at first," Bunting said to Sky Sports. "Me and my son were messing around on the platform. He introduced me to the platform and he showed me how to do some stuff."
"I think the first video was just me and him messing around, miming some stuff, and it just went from there. It's nice to be able show the fans and the people who have supported me that I'm not just a darts player, I have actually got a personality as well. That was the most important thing at the start and I think the more I did it, the more fans I generated, the more followers I received.
"What you see with me is what you get. There's no showmanship. I try and entertain people with my walk-on but when I play I try and keep focused and try and win but away from the oche you see me telling jokes, singing in karaoke bars, or on TikTok doing daft things.
Stephen Bunting in action
Bunting has always kept both feet on the ground. "I'm just a jovial type of person to be honest and that's one way I can give something back to the fans so they can see that side of me.
"If they bumped into me in Tesco or Asda, or at a football match, that's the sort of side of me they'll receive, not the very serious darts-playing side."
Support from fans
"When we play in some of these vast arenas, darts can be won by the width of a wire, but when you're playing at some of these big arenas you need to focus. Sometimes you need that crowd on your side. The cheering really does get you focused," Bunting continued.
"When I go to Germany or Belgium I'm still getting that support but it's really important to keep them on my side. When you're playing darts it can be a very lonely place but when you've got the fans behind you it's far easier.
Bunting's walk-on song ("Titanium" by David Guetta ft. Sia) is also invariably sung along loudly. "The walk-on songs gets you a lot of fans as well. It's really important that the crowd have a good time as well, so long may that continue.
"'Titanium' is my son's favourite song so that was the reason behind that and it's got the bulletproof tag line. I got rid of the bird because it was just a lot of hard work. I had to get on stage and do the Peter Griffin dance."
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