Thornton heads a field including Phil Taylor, Martin Adams, Kevin Painter, John Henderson and John Part among others between 4-5 October.
Speaking to YO1 Radio, he discussed his darting origins and how he is shaping up ahead of the tournament. "I'm getting there, I shouldn't be too far off. I've got a few tournaments coming up, a few exhibitions," said Thornton to YO1.
"I blame my wife actually (on his darting origins). She kicked me out, she was fed up of me practicing in the house so she told me to go and join a darts team but I turned professional in 2008."
"I've always loved darts but I love the atmosphere. You walk out and walk out into any arena, it's absolutely amazing."
But his main one to watch aside from himself on the WSDT Tour is Richie Howson who is top seed and has been Mr Consistency on the tour.
"I think they're all the ones to watch. Richie Howson he's very consistent. You don't see many bad games out of Richie. But there's a few. Jim McEwan who's coming through Seniors. He's some player as well."
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Whilst he was asked about who he doesn't like to play with 'Wolfie' Martin Adams cropping up but when the action begins, he is all in and laser focused.
"I don't like playing Martin Adams as I'm really good friends with him but if I'm up there in front of the dart board, you'll get no friends. They're all enemies."
Also asked if darts is a sport, he gave a comparison as to why it is with snooker and that it contains a lot more skill than many realise.
"It is a sport as it contains a lot of skill. In snooker, it's classed as a sport but you can set a 147 up but not take a nine-dart finish out in darts."
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.