Luke Littler vows to walk away from darts – but only on one condition

Luke Littler will be ‘gone’ from darts if he wins the World Championship 16 times in a row.

‘The Nuke’ is already up and running in his quest to accomplish the extraordinary feat having won darts’ ultimate prize in 2025 and 2026.

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But he has some way to go to equal Phil Taylor’s haul of 16 world titles, which were all won between 1990 and 2013.

Thanks to his record-breaking tally of world championships, Taylor is widely regarded as the greatest to ever pick up a set of darts.

But, at age 19, Littler has done plenty to suggest he could snatch Taylor’s tag having already scooped up every major on the darts calendar, with the exception of the European Championship.

Littler outlines ambitious 16-in-a-row plan

Even though Littler may be setting new records at what feels like every tournament, he admitted he can’t be considered as the greatest of all time until he matches Taylor’s 16 world titles.

“That talk has been around ever since I first came onto the scene,” Littler said after his 11-8 win over Nathan Aspinall at the World Matchplay in Blackpool.

“People have always asked whether I’ll be the next Phil Taylor.

“I’ve always said unless I win 16 World Championships and everything else that Phil has won, then I can’t say I’m the greatest.

“Will I still be around in 16 years? Who knows? If I win 16 World Championships in a row, I’m gone.

“If I don’t win 16 in a row? I’ll stick around another ten years.

“I’m very happy at the minute. I’ve picked up so much silverware already and I’ve nearly completed every major.

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“The main goal when I came onto the tour was simply to win one of every major.

“After that, the aim is to double it, triple it and keep going.”

To date, Littler has won ten PDC ranked televised events.

In fact, ‘The Nuke’ is yet to taste defeat at any of those tournaments in 2026, having already won the World Championship, the World Masters and the UK Open.

When is Littler next in action?

Littler is now aiming to make it four from four at the World Matchplay, where he is already into the quarter-finals to face Josh Rock.

Thursday night’s meeting will be the seventh between the pair this year, with Littler winning all six to date.

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It’s already been a tournament to remember for Littler, having hit a nine-darter in the opening leg against Aspinall in their second round encounter.

The perfect leg went some way to Littler finishing the contest with an absurd average of 113.68, which was the second highest in World Matchplay history.

Should Littler defeat Rock, he will face either two-time world champion Gary Anderson or Dutchman Dirk van Duijvenbode in the semi-final.