EDDIE HEARN is in awe of Luke Littler’s outrageous ability to keep his head on the biggest stage.
The 18-year-old PDC world champion has blazed a trail through the darts world over the past 14 months.
Littler racked up more than £1million in prize money on his way to numerous titles in 2024.
He then sealed his rise with a stunning 7-3 win over Michael van Gerwen in last month’s Ally Pally world final.
Boxing promoter Hearn is no stranger to dealing with breakthrough sports stars being thrust into the spotlight.
But the 45-year-old is stunned at how Littler hasn’t let his fame affect his game.
Hearn told Betfred: “I don’t know Luke too well.
“We’ve exchanged messages, but the most fascinating thing about Luke is how he’s managed to keep his head, keep performing at the highest level and do the right things.
“Plonkers can start to associate themselves, or start becoming involved, in athlete’s circles, but he’s got a really good group of people around him, which is so important for any big name.
“He’s obviously got a very close relationship with his dad and the rest of his family and they’ve done a brilliant job to nurture him into the competitor that he is today.”
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Littler returned to form with a bang last week, winning the Premier League Darts Week 2 in Glasgow.
The teenager is defending his crown in the tournament – and Hearn believes the natural “showman” is set to make himself a fortune.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Luke Littler hints he could launch side hustle alongside darts career with ‘loads’ of ideas already in the pipeline ” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6368747552112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]Hearn continued: “For him, it’s all about the darts.
“He’s making a fortune and he will continue to make more and more money, especially when the prize money, inevitably, continues to go up for the PDC.
“I just find it fascinating. I watched him in the Premier League the other night and he’s also a showman.
“I just think he’s perfect in every way and the reason why he’s perfect is because he lives to compete and he lives to play and everything else just follows on.
“As long as you can stay focused on that and you’re as good as he is, everything else comes with it.”
Littler returns to action in Dublin on Thursday in the Darts Premier League.