Phil Taylor Names 3 Darts Players Who Can Stop Luke Littler

Phil Taylor’s Verdict on the World Championship Field

The Phil Taylor Luke Littler storyline has become one of the defining narratives heading into the 2026/2027 PDC World Darts Championship. Taylor, the sport’s most decorated champion with 14 World Championship titles, has cast a critical eye over the current crop chasing Littler’s crown. His verdict is blunt. Only a handful of players, in his view, have the game to trouble the two-time defending champion at Ally Pally.

Speaking in an interview with GiveMeSport, Taylor named three players specifically. He rates Luke Humphries, Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton as the men capable of giving the 19-year-old a real contest.

“At the minute, the only person who can give Luke Littler a game is Luke Humphries. Gerwyn Price, he can do it too. Very, very good player. Jonny Clayton, on his day, he’s a brilliant finisher. But there’s only four or five in that tournament who could really win it.”

That is a striking assessment from a man who won 16 world titles across two governing bodies. It tells supporters just how far Littler has pulled clear of the field in the eyes of the man who set the standard he is chasing.

The Elite Trio and the Mental Gulf at Ally Pally

Taylor’s shortlist is not just about throwing arm. Humphries has the world number one pedigree and a World Championship title of his own from 2024. Price brings raw power and a proven big match temperament. Clayton, the Welsh finisher, has already shown he can dismantle Littler on the biggest stages, a point Taylor stressed when discussing his finishing.

For more on how Clayton rates his own chances, see Clayton’s thoughts on facing the young prodigy.

Taylor’s deeper point, though, was about belief rather than ability. He suggested most of the World Championship field turn up already resigned to losing to Littler.

“There’s only a handful of players that can actually win it. But I think at the minute, there’s only a handful of players who actually believe they can win it. A lot of people are just making up the numbers.”

That gap in conviction, Taylor implies, matters as much as any statistic. A player can have the tools to win a leg or a set against Littler. Doubt in his own head, before he even steps to the oche, will beat him first.

Statistical Proof and Clayton’s Amsterdam Blueprint

Littler’s results back up Taylor’s caution. He beat Michael van Gerwen 7-3 to win his first World Championship in 2025, then defended it with a 7-1 win over Gian van Veen. Those are not narrow margins. They are the record of a player operating on the same level as the very best the sport has ever produced.

Yet Clayton has already provided the closest thing to a blueprint. He beat Littler 10-4 in the quarter-final of the World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam, a result covered in our earlier report. It stands as concrete proof that Littler can be beaten comfortably, not just edged, when an opponent combines Clayton’s finishing with the self belief Taylor talks about.

That Amsterdam scoreline is the strongest piece of evidence any of Taylor’s three names can point to. It shows the gap to Littler, while real, is not unbridgeable.

Future Implications for Littler’s Title Defense

The Phil Taylor Luke Littler debate will run through the whole build up to the new World Championship. The tournament itself starts on Friday, December 11 and runs until Sunday, January 3, with Littler arriving as champion once again.

Taylor’s comments frame the tournament as a genuine three horse race beneath Littler, with Humphries, Price and Clayton the only realistic threats to a third straight title. Taylor knows what it takes to dominate a World Championship better than anyone in darts; his own 14 titles remain the benchmark Littler is quietly building towards. Read more on whether he is chasing Taylor’s World Championship record.

For now, the message from the greatest player the sport has seen is clear. Littler remains the man to beat, but Humphries, Price and Clayton are the only three with a genuine case for beating him.

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