How GOOD Was PRIME Phil Taylor?!
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- Опубліковано 4 лют 2025
- Phil Taylor defined darts. With 16 world titles, over 200 professional tournament wins, and an aura that broke opponents before they even stepped on stage, Taylor’s reign wasn’t just about winning-it was about making the impossible look routine. But just how good was prime Phil Taylor? In this video, we break down his rise from a Stoke-on-Trent factory worker to the greatest darts player of all time, his unmatched era of dominance, the mindset that crushed even the best opponents, and whether Luke Littler or anyone else could ever surpass his record.
Was Taylor’s record-setting career the greatest run in sports history, or could the next generation rewrite darts history? Let us know in the comments.
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#PhilTaylor #Darts #ThePower #PDC #LukeLittler #GOAT #DartsLegend #WorldChampion #SportsHistory #DartingGreats #MVG #DartsWorld #GreatestOfAllTime #PhilTaylorDarts #BDO
Were you watching Darts when Phil Taylor was dominating?!
Taylors best year was 2012 where he averaged 104 over 12 months, no one has come close to that years later
Unbeatable
Where did you get those statistics? They do not seem correct. His average in major/premier events during 2012 was no higher than 102. And he 'only' won 4 out of 8 major tournaments. His 2009 season (when he did average around 104) was much better. That year he won 7 out of 8 majors.
@markbunce3405: Clearly not unbeatable that year.
Phil was throwing 110+ averages when he didn't need to. Imagine what he could do if he was pushed week in, week out. He's the GOAT.
He'll never be beaten - Littler will do well but look at Van Gerwen, he was the next big thing but it's tough to keep up the levels for year on year.
Yeah, consistency at the top is brutal-so many players have had short peaks. Littler’s got the talent, but can he keep it going year after year? Who do you see as his biggest threat right now?
@TheDartSide1 The amount of money he could have by his 20s is the biggest threat.
He has the best fundamentals of all of them tho, a natural thrower, looks like MVG has recently changed his to get back some consistency, Taylor was famous for understacking, littler just throws.
Littler also has the other Luke playing across his eventual career timespan. Indeed, Humphries, on top form, is better. Neither will get close to Taylor,... a player I actually do not like as a person, but, over the course of history, for any sport, will be the definition of the greatest of them all.
@BrianVincent-gz2dq Humphries on his very best day isn't as good as littler on his.
140 set average and 4 9 darters last year say so as well, he literally could have had a double figures on 9s for the season, I see him miss double 12 felt like half a dozen times.
Acceptance amd denial is the hardest stage of grief 😔
Yeah i remember when MvG was having a huge run of titles.
People were saying he was going to threaten Taylors world titles, but he no chance.of getting half that. He'll do well to get quarter that
Just compare his premier league averages in his peak versus that of the competition... He was that good.
Exactly. The numbers don’t lie-Taylor at his peak was just ridiculous. But do you think the game has evolved enough that today’s players could’ve challenged him back then?
@TheDartSide1 It's tough to say because we can really only compare against peers at the time. Players are better today but is that becuase of the training, equipment, and high interest because the money is good?? So would prime Phil today average 110+ under today's standards??? It's like asking if Jesse Owens was the best among his peers but yet we know he wouldn't qualify for the olympics today with his 1936 times... Anyhow, thanks for responding..
Excellent video capturing the darts phenomenon 'Phil The Power Taylor'.
Luke Littler has one world title at the ridiculous age of 17, which in itself is a record unlikely to be broken. If littler averages one world title every 3 years for the next 42 years, he will still be one shy of Taylors insane 16!!!
Thats a record many young up and coming players would like to dispute, and players will only get better, somehow.
He was playing darts 30 years ago to the standard of the top players now he took darts to another level
Great video brother 🎯
Taylor's records are safe in my opinion. Taylor was the only giant of darts in his time. Today, Littler is the biggest giant, but there are many other giants amongst him. Winning more than 16 world titles in today's darting standard isn't possible I don't think.
I totally agree with you about Taylor being the greatest darts player, with all of his accomplishments to back the claim. Nor am I a Phil Taylor detractor. Though I would have to disagree with your statement that “Before Taylor, darts was a sport of streaky form and inconsistent champions.”
Phil Taylor's consistency and longevity is phenomenal and second to none. But that doesn't take away the credit to his predecessors who paved the way to the popularity of pro darts, Alan Evans, Leighton Reese, John Lowe, Jocky Wilson, Eric Bristow and the others I may have forgotten to mention.
In 2009, Taylor had a tournament average of 110 over all 85 legs.
You are thinking of the European Championship, but it was over 58 legs.
@BasMeijer No, I'm not, thats all different achivment. Look at the averages, count the legs and work it out:
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_World_Matchplay
@@danielpooleoriginal You seem to be confused. Neither of his matches during that Matchplay tournament had a 110+ average. And he played 94 legs. His tournament average was around 106.
People always say “the standard back in Taylor’s day wasn’t as good” and my dad put it best. He wouldn’t have won as much as he has but he’d still win a hell of a lot more than he loses
If Taylor was in his prime now he would still be winning multiple titles. His averages prove this. But it’s silly to compare eras.
Yeah, prime Taylor would still be a menace today. His numbers were unreal. But do you think the level of competition now is tougher, or does that not matter when someone’s that dominant?
@TheDartSide1 I actually think the level of competition was tougher around the time of his retirement. MVG ain’t what he was and the likes of both Luke’s aren’t at the level MVG was back then. Also Anderson and wright aren’t what they were
@kieron8725 surely Littler is playing to just as good a standard as prime mvg? 1 half year on tour and already a world champion and finalist, pl champion, multiple floor and television events as well as multiple 9 darters
I'm with you on that. I think there are more quality players now, but the best then are better than the best now.
@@Echo-mz6tzLittlerbis never playing as good as Prime mvg already. 2016-2017 Mvg is miles ahead littler. And i don't say that Littler can reach this Level because he's 18 but mvg was unbeatable these days and Littler is beatable.
Taylor was consistently strong like nobody else ever was, while also being stronger than everyone around him. The question is, can Littler (or anyone else) be consistently strong, and consistently stronger than everyone else? Because if he can, he has the advantage of starting earlier which makes it possible for him to surpass the title records.
During the 90s and 00s, 100+ averages were rare. Nowadays, they are not commonplace, but not nearly as unusual. So for a new dominator, the task would be steeper in a way because they'd have to consistently average 105+, and Taylor's best year was 2012 with an overall average of 104.
The increased overall level has also pushed the best players to play even greater darts. If Phil Taylor were 20 years younger, he'd have even higher numbers and he'd still crush right now, I firmly believe that.
To put it differently: Prime Phil Taylor was head and shoulders above everyone else most of the time, but the current generation is almost as good as he was back then when you look at raw numbers. Thus, a new dominator would have to be even better to surpass him in my view. And I don't think that's very likely because the overall level has risen beyond what human form swings etc. can compensate.
Littler might surpass Taylor's records, but I don't think he'll surpass Taylor's sheer dominance of the Darts sport. Noone will ever do that, I think.
Taylor’s record will not be matched -littler will do well to win 5-6 world titles,Taylor is the reason darts is in such a good place nowadays-he raised the standard single handily,he won 9 in a row at one point.The GOAT
The fact is we loved Taylor winning also we never hated his opponent 👍♥️💪💪
Winning a world title is 1 thing. Keeping momentum and wanting and staying hungry for more titles then winning more is another.
Spot on
I just want littler to enjoy his darts-how many titles he wins doesn't matter as long as he gets paid doing something he loves he's golden
His records will never be beaten. Different era, too much talent about and the youth coming through will only make it harder for just one individual player to rule as Taylor once did.
It doesn't matter if his records are beaten, it's like when a band gets more number ones these days than the Beatles... Does it mean they're better than them, I don't think so. There will only ever be one Phil Taylor, and he's probably the best there ever was or will be ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Taylor always hitting the winning double with his third dart: the Taylor tease.
Littler looks like the One, but there are many other Juniors coming through with incredible ability, there will be strong young competition not to mention the current crop of the worlds best, most of those players are aged between 30 and 45
It wasn't just one big average it was the consistency he could do it with it will never be rivalled
He was THE BEST. He averaged 110 over a first to 7 sets format in a world championship final (2009). That record has not been broken
Taylor was still in his prime before retirement from pdc at the age of what 62 years old or something?
Littler is special we all know that.
Both two very different style players.
Taylor calculated every shot he took to the amount millimeter of physics can go.
Littlers shots just go in without much thought, just naturally. will that be enough to stay consistent and win world titles through out the years?
Rooting for littler, he’s more of a reason to watch darts since Phil Taylor.
We’ve seen those fast players go through many ups and many downs.
Its unlikley anyone will ever come even close to Taylor - so much can happen over such a long time . Between diseases , nerves becoming weaker, Divorce issues, lack of motivation because of high pressure and being rich already. And btw. prime Taylor would have also taken last championship(s)
mad to think he didn't even start getting going till he was touching 30. Littler is a one off freak of nature but it's hard to see him having the discipline and pure drive to keep on top that Phil had for 30 years.
Yeah, it’s crazy how late Phil peaked compared to Luke, who’s already smashing records as a teenager. Keeping that hunger and discipline for decades is a whole different challenge. Do you think Littler has the mentality to stay at the top long-term, or is the modern game too competitive for anyone to dominate like Phil did?
Taylor's record will stand forever. Littler slowly stop winning as we can see this season.
Littler is just a stubborn teenager who says he only needs 30 minutes of training a day. But if you want to be consistently good at something, you have to practice for hours like Taylor. Now the effects of Littler's training are starting to show and if he doesn't start training more, he'll just be a mediocre guy because others are consistently improving and he's not.
Prime Phil Taylor punished mistakes every time .
12:05 what kind of dartboard is that?
The quadro board. Used it a few years in the mid nineties for the wdc uk matchplay
Nah, i strongly disagree with his statement...
Taylor raised the level like no one ever did and will do.
The man had some kind of extra gear left when he was in his prime and he's theoretically the best sportsman who's ever lived with 16 worldtitles. kind of impossible to beat imho.
I mean this didn't need a video of how good phil was... his resume of championships: world champs, matchplays, grand prixs, uk opens, grand slams, etc he won shows it
Yeah, his trophy cabinet says it all-there’s really no debate when you look at the sheer number of titles. But do you think his dominance was more about his skill level, or was it also a mental edge over his opponents?
Littler needs to put in the practice hours like Taylor did to be like Taylor which he isn’t.
Phil Taylor simply the best but it is not just about talent but having the focus over that long length of time so I am not convinced Luke Littler will surpass Phil and I would go as far as to say no one will. Phil, Eric et al were a different breed. Other than Damon Heta how many will say I practice 4 hours a day every day. I am pretty sure that was part of Phil's regime. Phil, Eric etc also still played regularly for their local teams.
THX to P.T. They have PDC DART too I believe - THIS was a GREAT STEP TOO... - So he made LIFE good for many other PLAYERS too ... ;)
The goat
Imagine if he turned pro at 16
Time is on Littler's side, he has plenty of it so it is possible for him to match or even beat Taylor's record, the real challenge is being consistent over a long period of time though, combine that with the standard that a lot play at these days, it's a hell of a challenge. I'd say unlikely, possible, but unlikely.
It's just old vs young at thins point. It's a generational thing
Records have to be broken as always ?! And besides Taylor himself would want the level of darts to go up? So Littler has to be a given the benefit of the doubt with the way he's playing and i think with hard work he'll achieve great things. Wish him well in any case ?! 💪
to beat 16 world titles will be almost impossible but if one super talent can do it will be the nuke I guess. Let’s wait and see what happens the next decade.
@@kriserauw5970
No !!!!!!
In any sport, a winner needs an adversary.
I love Littler, but Humphries shall ensure (and vice versa), that neither shall manage double figures as far as world titles is concerned.
When the world stops spinning, Taylor shall rightly be acknowledges as the GOAT ....and I hate tje prick,... but credit where it's due.
I dont think any current player will wim more than 5 world championships
I can't think of a single other sports with such a huge gap of accomplishments/skill between the best and next best.
No chance Luke gets even half the amount of World Cups.
Yeah, Phil’s dominance is pretty unmatched across most sports-he wasn’t just the best, he was miles ahead of everyone else for decades. Even if Luke keeps improving, the sheer numbers seem impossible to match. Do you think anyone will ever come close, or is Taylor’s legacy untouchable forever?
@TheDartSide1 His records could be close or even broken by someone else, but I'd say it's more likely to take something like 30+ years so happen (assuming darts remains as popular or grows more).
Nobody will match him, the prize money is so much more now, players can become wealthier than taylor without winning half as much. I believe if littler really wanted to he could beat his record but hes not as dedicated as phil was and talent will only get you so far
Yeah, the money in the game now definitely changes things-players don’t need to grind as hard for as long. Phil had that old-school work ethic where winning was everything. Do you think anyone in today’s game has that same obsession with being the best, or is the sport just different now?
@TheDartSide1 the only player i think that has the same obsession with winning is mvg
Taylor is untouchable. He was world class and won world titles cross several generations.
Decades, several generations would imply at least 60 years lol.
Taylor had to make way for MvG, now he has to bow to Luke the Nuke.
It’s crazy how the torch keeps getting passed. MvG had his era, and now Littler’s stepping up. Do you think he’ll dominate long-term, or will someone else come through to challenge him?
no doubt Luke has the ability ATM to go a long way, but all sports are littered with promising players that dont make the distance. I hope to watch luke for many years, but he's a real long way to go to get anywhere near phils records, only time will tell
Yeah, spot on. Loads of young talents have shown promise but couldn’t sustain it long-term. Luke’s got all the tools, but maintaining that level year after year is a different challenge. Do you think he’s got the mentality to keep evolving, or is it too early to tell?
I dont agree, the player pool is much deeper. Just like snooker for example. Steve Davis didnt play against the competition of todays top 64
and he played with "brass bombers" 😅
Taylor used to be my most favourite player to watch. Then the Gibraltar incident against Winstanley changed all that. Still the goat, just not an honorable one.
Phil will always be the best ever, there's a reason he is still in all the record books. Anybody saying otherwise just either doesn't like Phil because of the bogus "sexual assault" stuff or is just a Littler fan, not a darts fan.
He cannot 'always' be the best ever unless darts ceased to be. And people not agreeing with your sentiment are not real darts fans? More baby talk. Taylor was dominant because he was in an era of mediocrity and would not be as dominant if he were in his prime today. Much like snooker regards Davis and Hendry... they would not be as successful today, since the standard has gone up wholesale. Phil said it himself, Littler has the potential to be the greatest ever. The kid is insanely good. If people can't see that (and I'm from Bristow/Taylor eras), they are either in denial or not real darts fans.
Facts, or they were born yesterday and never watched the Greatest play
Your talking crap
taylor would be easy top 4 in todays standards most of his opponents from back then would be fighting for top 16 to 32
He was best player ever
Yes but during those decades. Maybe 3 to 5 players at best could maintain over 100 average. Now the top 16 do it regularly 🤷♂️
3 and a half decades? you mean 2 and half. 1990 to 2015
Prime Taylor was 08-13
darts is uniquely able to compare different eras.
even if the strength of opposition varies a persons 3DA doesnt lie. The only slight variation to considrer is the size of the doubles / trebbles and bull & 25. I'd be interested to know how these have changed over time.
But let me be quite clear. Littler has no chance whatsoever of getting anywhere close to Taylor's acheivement.
Tadej Pogcar, on the otherhand, will one day overhaul Cavendish in winning the most TDF stage wins
Yeah, darts is one of the few sports where you can directly compare stats across eras, which makes the debate even more interesting. The board changes are a good point too-small tweaks can have a big impact at the highest level. Do you think the game has actually gotten harder over time, or do the improvements in equipment and training balance it out? Also, bold call on Pogacar-do you reckon he’s got the longevity to pull it off?
@TheDartSide1 wont even take him that long! Some of Eddie Meyrx's records will stand up against TP - but only because tge general standard has increased massively.
I would say the target sizes must have decreased over time - otherwise the Old School players would be constantly reminding us abiut tge tiny trebbles tgey had in their day. but other than that - i dont think the beer has improved massively
:)
Taylor played in an era where the standards are 80s now a days the standards are so much higher and higher
I will remind you priestly was averaging 100 against Taylor , plus Taylor had prime Barney, ando , Lewis Wade and even mvg himself, your talking nonsense
@@robertcolcombe6893he’s obviously fairly new to darts and never watched the man in his pomp !
Sure in his early days the competition wasnt as strong but then one by one came all those threats you mentioned and more including Whitlock.
They may have knocked him off his perch briefly but Taylor would then go back to the practice board and come back stronger every single time. So many times we heard people say he’s finished and then he would up another level and all with chunkier darts and poorer quality boards more prone to bounce outs
Nope, Bristow in the mid 80's was averaging 97.5 in world finals.
luke has way better competition to play against
Yeah, no doubt the level of competition now is way tougher across the board. There are so many players capable of putting up huge averages on any given night. Do you think that makes Luke’s achievements so far even more impressive, or would prime Taylor still dominate today?
@TheDartSide1 btw im not taking anything away fom phil he can only beat whats infront of him and he was consistant for many decades i think what lukes done is unique i compare it to wayne rooney its not normal to see a boy turn pro and do damage from the get go it just isnt normal.
Littler has the potential to beat it just all depends on his hunger for the sport as he wins and gets older
The prize moneys rising
Also the likes of Humperies, MVG, Aspinall & DVDB all challenging him is tough
Phil was the best ever.. better dartboards now.. guys now have a advantage bigtime
Yeah, Phil’s dominance was unreal, and he did it with older equipment that wasn’t as forgiving. The tech in dartboards now definitely helps with tighter groupings and fewer bounce-outs. Do you think that evens the playing field, or would Taylor still be untouchable even with today’s gear?
@TheDartSide1 Think Taylor would still have been dominant.. Not a big fan really but you have to be blind not to see the brilliance