Phil Taylor on his upcoming visit to Hull with Luke Littler
Phil Taylor and Luke Littler will star at Connexin Live late this year(Image: Target Darts)
Phil Taylor has promised an explosive night of darts in Hull on the eve of the next World Championship.
The 16-time world champion and undisputed GOAT will be the special guest host when four of the sport’s top stars battle it out at Connexin Live on Sunday, December 6. The line-up will be headlined by Luke Littler, who will take on a Gian van Veen in a repeat of the 2026 World final, which the Nuke won 7-1.
The other semi-final will feature two more huge names in Stephen Bunting and Joe Cullen. All four are regulars on the exhibition circuit, but the Hull night will carry added spice as it comes so close to the 2026/27 World Championship, which starts on December 11.
Taylor, who will be on hand to meet and greet the VIP guests, sign autographs and pose for selfies, says Littler and Co will be looking to strike psychological blows ahead of the Alexandra Palace extravaganza
The Power told HullLive: “They take it seriously. Exhibitions are like having a bit of one-upmanship. If I played anyone in an exhibition, I wanted to smash them.
“The more battle scars they get, you get in their head, so the next time you play them in a major, they’re thinking, ‘He smashed me the other week, I wonder if he’ll play like that again?’ It’s all mind games.”
Taylor, 65, who has retired from playing, has fond memories of Hull and was a friend of the late Joe Longthorne. He said: “I’ve played in Hull many, many times and have got good friends from there. Hull’s lovely. It’ll be a good night.”
Two-time world champion Littler will be the star attraction. With both sponsored by Target Darts, the pair have worked together at various events.
Taylor says the stories about the teenager barely practising ahead of matches are 100 per cent true. He added: “He is phenomenal, I can’t say a bad word about him.
“And when he says he doesn’t practice, he really doesn’t. I was with him a couple of weeks ago. He sat there [before a match] and he never threw a dart. He then went out there and beat Luke Humphries 8-1!
“I could not do that. He’s better than me in that regard. If I was there for two hours beforehand, I’d be practising for two hours. But he’s capable of doing it, he’s brilliant.”
* Tickets for ‘A Night At The Darts’ on December 6 are available now from the Connexin Live website.