Luke Littler is second favourite to win BBC Sports Personality of the Year
Darts icon Phil Taylor has advised Luke Littler to skip the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year gala and concentrate on his quest to become world champion. From his base in the Potteries, ‘The Power’ cautioned 17-year-old Littler against the allure of the “hang out on the red carpet.”
He said: “If I was his manager I’d tell him, ‘Sorry, you’re not going’ – and record a video message.” Littler, dubbed ‘Luke the Nuke’, is second favourite to win the coveted BBC award, trailing behind Olympic gold medallist Keely Hodgkinson.
However, 16-time world champion Taylor, who came second to jockey AP McCoy in the SPOTY race 14 years ago, worries that the competition at the Paddy Power PDC World Championship at Alexandra Palace will be too intense for Littler to be sidetracked by glitz and glamour. He said: “Littler is playing like a magician, but Luke Humphries is the man to beat at Ally Pally.
READ MORE: ‘Mad’ – Luke Littler breaks silence after being nominated for BBC Sports Personality of the Year
READ MORE: Luke Littler compared to golf icon worth £1billion ahead of World Darts Championship
“He’s the reigning champion, he’s No.1 in the world and Littler will have to get past him in the semi-finals if the draw unfolds the way you would expect. If I was Luke’s manager I’d tell him, ‘Sorry, you’re not going.’
“Do you want to hang out with a few celebrities on a red carpet, or do you want to win £500,000? And the prize money is only part of it – if Luke wins the world title at 17 years old, the spin-offs and commercial deals will be astronomical, proper life-changing money.
“I was fortunate enough to be voted Sports Personality runner-up in 2010, and I did attend the event, but I was 50 years old and had won 15 world titles by then. If I were Luke, I’d record a video message,” said the darts legend. Littler is set to face either Ryan Meikle or Fallon Sherrock in the second round at Ally Pally on December 21, just four days after the SPOTY event in Manchester.
Taylor added: “If I was in the practice room as a player now, I would treat Luke the same way as anybody else. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough. There’s no point in patting him on the back, and saying how good he is for a 17 year old, if he’s going to turn around and knock you out of the tournament.
“But on the other hand, I wouldn’t go around trying to intimidate him and telling him, ‘You’re in with the big boys now’ – you don’t throw darts with your mouth. Treat him with respect, like any other opponent, and the cream will rise to the top. Do I think some of his unorthodox finishes rub some of the players up the wrong way? Absolutely!
“If that was me standing on the oche, and he took out a big finish on a route that nobody else would even contemplate, he would get right up my nose – but only because he’s so talented and brave enough to take it on. The kid is special. What a player, what a lift he’s given the whole game. People who never gave darts a second look are now tuning in because of Luke Littler.”
Taylor, 64, who has now hung up his competitive darts following a hip replacement and groundbreaking eye lens surgery, expressed regret that he won’t be seen at the PDC World Championship. Despite his retirement, Taylor feels somewhat distanced from the sport.
“I won’t be going to Ally Pally because I haven’t been invited,” he revealed. “When they named the World Matchplay trophy after me, which was a lovely gesture, I was going to present it to the winner in Blackpool, but I got a call to say somebody else was going to do it. That’s life – I had a fantastic career, I won both the World Championship and the World Matchplay 16 times, and then I said ‘No’ to Barry Hearn.”
The darting icon reflected on his decision to retire rather than heed Barry Hearn’s advice, acknowledging Hearn’s significant role in his life. “When I lost in the final to Rob Cross seven years ago, he wanted me to carry on and play my card out on the Pro Tour instead of retiring there and then, but I was knackered,” he continued.
“If I had my time again, I would have heeded Barry’s advice because he was my manager for 18 years, almost like a second father to me, and invariably he was right. When I won my first world title, my prize money was probably a year’s wages for the average working man in Stoke-on-Trent.
“Now they are playing for half a million, and thanks to Barry, the world champion will soon be taking home £1 million.”