He is the miracle teen who only had time to pass a solitary GCSE en route to conquering the darts world, but, for Luke Littler, life itself is now filled with straight As.<\/p>\n
A-grade perfection at Alexandra Palace, A-list celebrity congratulations lighting up his phone, and now apt plans to welcome an A-Class Mercedes to the drive in Warrington.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year I was looking at driving and I loved the Ford Focus, but now I\u2019ve gone up in the world just a little,\u201d he tells assembled reporters, his world title-winning feat still sinking in after four hours\u2019 sleep.<\/p>\n
The Mercedes, when it does arrive, will need L plates. Littler\u2019s life of relentless darts, with computer games in between, has left as little time for driving lessons as it did for school exams.<\/p>\n
But, despite continuing to live off a monthly allowance from his multi-million-pound projected earnings, the Mercedes will be the one extravagance he now affords himself. \u201cI\u2019ve always loved a Mercedes A-Class,\u201d said Littler. \u201cJust a small car.\u201d<\/p>\n
In almost every other respect, the day-to-day is remarkably ordinary for this otherwise extraordinary young man. Littler was thrilled to get a message from David Beckham but he was unaware the Prime Minister had also been among prominent figures to congratulate him.<\/p>\n
Instead, as he returns north, a major cause of excitement for Littler was the prospect of catching up on some kip in his own bed. \u201cFor now, it\u2019s a case of \u2018I\u2019ve won my first world title, so let\u2019s relax and chill for a little bit\u2019,\u201d he says of his plans with family over the coming days.<\/p>\n
Littler credits his parents, Anthony Buckley and Lisa Littler, with keeping him so grounded. As he became the youngest ever winner of the PDC World Darts Championship with a 7-3 victory over Michael van Gerwen, he regularly looked over his shoulder at Buckley for reassurance. \u201cMy dad looked so settled throughout the game,\u201d Littler explained. \u201cWhen I was looking over to him, he didn\u2019t look nervous. So I knew myself that if he\u2019s not nervous then I just need to play with freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before Friday\u2019s final, Littler was listening to Lip Up Fatty<\/span> by Bad Manners and a mixture of house music on his Airpods to get himself pumped up. But there was little sign of any raucous celebrating after his triumph. He said \u201ceveryone was in tears\u201d, including his mother who had been most nervous, but much of his time was eaten away replying to messages on his phone.<\/p>\n He eventually made it to bed at 2am, awaking at his Islington digs at around 6am, with thoughts immediately turning to returning home. \u201cWe\u2019ll see,\u201d he said, when asked whether he might splash out on a holiday prior to returning to the oche in the Bahrain Masters. \u201cWe\u2019ll go home tonight. We all can\u2019t wait. We\u2019ll see where we go. I\u2019m sure we\u2019ll try and see where we go. My mum and dad might be going away. I\u2019ll chill at home.\u201d<\/p>\n Outside the four walls of his newly bought family home, Littler does recognise, however, his world has changed forever. \u201cMesmerising performance,\u201d wrote Keir Starmer after watching him lift the trophy. \u201cCongratulations. An inspirational performance under such pressure to lift the trophy. You should be really proud of what you\u2019ve achieved tonight, not just for yourself, but for the sport of darts as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t know that,\u201d was Littler\u2019s immediate response when asked whether he had read the message. He was significantly more struck by his message from Beckham, who, to his delight, is now among the Manchester United fan\u2019s 1.5 million Instagram followers. \u201cIt\u2019s big to know that not only the likes of David Beckham are watching, but the Prime Minister too, that\u2019s amazing,\u201d said Littler.<\/p>\n That said, Littler has been remarkably unaffected by the hype around him. The teenager was making only his second appearance at the tournament having reached the final on his debut 12 months ago, losing to current world No 1 Luke Humphries. Since then, Littler has risen from 164th to second in the PDC Order of Merit.<\/p>\n Repeatedly, he acknowledged the major role his family has played in his rise. \u201cThey have put the hard work and effort into me but just to get them on stage, and my brother\u2019s 21st [birthday] today, it is a good present,\u201d Littler said. \u201cMy sister didn\u2019t want to come on stage. It is not a normal 17-year-old\u2019s life but it shows what I have done for myself. My parents got the right sponsors for me and they have also done a lot for me.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked how it felt to be compared with the likes of Pele, Boris Becker and Lester Piggott in the list of great sporting teenagers, he added: \u201cIt\u2019s crazy to even think about being mentioned in the same sentence as some of the best sportsmen there\u2019s ever been. Even if I had won it last year as a 16-year-old, it would have been incredible, but a year later I\u2019ve won the title and it feels a bit crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n On Friday, he had been rubbing shoulders with another sporting great, Chris Hoy, who was on stage for his trophy presentation. Typically unphased, Littler said he had not realised who he was amid the delirium of celebrations.<\/p>\n \u201cI heard him talking about prostate cancer a few days before but I didn\u2019t know him until my mum and dad came on stage,\u201d Littler said. \u201cIt\u2019s very sad what he\u2019s going through, but the limelight on him has helped raise a lot of money for Prostate Cancer UK, which is great, and it was nice he had the confidence to come on stage and present the trophy.\u201d<\/p>\n As Littler makes his way back up the M6, all that was left to worry about was exactly where his world title and the Ballon D\u2019Art trophy (for hitting the most 180s at the championship) will go. \u201cWhen we moved into the house, there were two cabinets either side of the TV,\u201d he said. \u201cWe were like, \u2018there\u2019s only one thing going in there, and that\u2019s all the trophies\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n With the trophy collection growing faster than even Littler would have believed 18 months ago, a third cabinet, he accepts, will almost certainly be in place in 2025.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n