Stephen Bunting interview: ‘It’s been nice to prove doubters wrong’

When Stephen Bunting arrived in Milton Keynes last week for the latest tournaments in the Players Championship series, he needed just five minutes to know he was ready to go.

‘I turned up at the venue and within about five minutes on the practice board, I’d missed double 12 for a nine darter,’ he tells Metro. ‘I sat down, relaxed and didn’t bother throwing much after that because I knew it was going to be a good few days.’

Two finals in two days – losing on Monday against Jeffrey de Graaf and victorious on Tuesday against Jonny Clayton – would suggest Bunting was indeed correct to trust his instincts. 

Far from an anomaly, though, such impressive levels of performance have become a familiar feeling for ‘The Bullet’ this season.

Now ranked fourth in the world, Bunting reached the semi-finals at the World Championships earlier in the year. World Series of Darts victories in Bahrain and Copenhagen have demonstrated he can win trophies against the very best. Last Tuesday’s victory represented his fifth PDC title of the season, a tally second only to Luke Littler in 2025.

‘It’s definitely the best form of my life,’ Bunting says. ‘Sometimes I get on the board and it can be effortless. I feel like you can just place them in the treble, 20, to be honest.

‘There’s been patches throughout my career where I’ve hit ceilings, but obviously, consistency over the last 18 months has been really, really good.

‘I’m now consistently hitting over 100 averages and playing against the best players in the world. Obviously, you need them averages to help you win those games, and I’m getting big wins against big players. So really happy with the form.’

Alongside his form, if two years of consistently high-level darts should be labelled as such, Bunting’s social-media presence and fan-favourite walk-on song have created a perfect storm which has seen him achieve almost cult-like status amongst the sports fans.

And yet, despite all that, it has still been far from the dream year for Bunting.

‘Premier League return was like joining a new school’

Much of that is down to his run in this year’s Premier League, the eight-man travelling circus that lasts 17 weeks and spans several countries. 

Bunting made his first appearance in the tournament in over a decade, but after four long months, found himself propping up the table after a head-scratchingly poor campaign, which saw him win just seven matches. 

‘Obviously, the Premier League was a real disappointment,’ Bunting says with a clear hint of frustration that betrays his usual softly-spoken tone. ‘But it’s dog-eat-dog, and you’re playing against the best players in the world, so it’s a difficult scenario. 

‘I’ve not played in it for 10 years, so it was a bit like joining a new school, not knowing what to expect. Playing in those big venues and in front of those crowds was something I hadn’t done for so long, and it took a while to adjust.’

There were positives, notably a night win in Berlin (‘a special moment in my career’), but the experience mostly left Bunting with a point to prove, particularly in the eyes of some of his most vocal critics.

‘Some people don’t watch us all year round, but they watch me there and think I don’t deserve a spot,’ he says. ‘They were putting on social media that I was going to struggle and not get back again.

‘I think I’ve shown with the World Series wins and my other performances that I can play my best at the top level, so it’s good to prove a few doubters wrong.’

Bunting now heads into the busy end-of-year schedule looking to firm up that place in next year’s Premier League and potentially bring home his second TV title after his triumph at the World Masters in 2024.

Next month’s World Grand Prix is first up on that list in Leicester, and, perhaps unsurprisingly given his recent results, Bunting strikes a confident tone.

‘Winning breeds confidence. The more I win, whether that be a tournament or just a few matches, you take a lot of confidence away from that,’ he says. 

‘Being positive in myself, enjoying every moment of it, and obviously, I still believe I’ve got another 10 years at the top of the game. I need to wear hard to keep myself there, but I’m playing the best darts of my life, so why can’t it happen?’

Stephen Bunting is playing in the BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix in Leicester on 6th – 12th October. Learn more at BOYLESports.com 18+ GambleAware.

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.