Luke Littler intends to go into hiding if he wins the World Darts Championship in January, saying ‘no one will find me’ if he becomes the youngest ever winner of the event.
The 17-year-old was just 16 when he reached the Alexandra Palace final at the start of 2024, losing out to Luke Humphries after a remarkable run on debut.
The Nuke went from a hot prospect unknown outside of darting circles to a huge star, not just in Britain but recognised around the world.
His brilliance in wins over Christian Kist, Andrew Gilding, Matt Campbell, Raymond van Barneveld, Brendan Dolan and Rob Cross was incredible and the story of the teenager making the sport look so easy captivated millions.
It was a lot to take in for the unassuming lad from Warrington and soon after defeat to Humphries he went to a secret location in Wales to escape the madness of overnight fame.
He has another chance to become the youngest winner of the PDC World Championship again in the coming weeks, and he says if the intense media circus erupts again, he will disappear again.
‘If the same happens, I’ll hide away again, no one will find me,’ Littler told The Telegraph.
Littler has already won over £1m in prize money on the oche, landing £200,000 for his World Championship run and winning 10 events in his first year as a fully-fledged professional on tour.
He remains a lad of simple tastes, though and will be having as quiet a build-up as possible before he gets his World Championship challenge underway on 21 December.
‘A lot of sleep, practice, Xbox, chill out,’ he said. ‘An hour to an-hour-and-a-half [a day] on the board. Keep the arm loose. [But] mostly just chilling… [see] some mates… go out with them sometimes, otherwise just chilling in my bedroom on my own, playing my game, on my phone.’
The bookmakers expect either Littler or Humphries to be lifting the trophy on 3 January, although there cannot be a repeat of the final as they are in the same half of the draw.
If both avoid an upset loss beforehand then they are seeded to meet in a blockbuster semi-final on Thursday 2 January.
Lurking in the other half of the draw are the likes of former champions Michael van Gerwen, Gary Anderson and Michael Smith.
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