Luke Littler will look to continue his meteoric rise by winning the World Grand Prix on his maiden appearance at the event. The teenage sensation catapulted himself into superstardom by reaching the World Darts Championship final at the beginning of the year. It proved to be no flash in the pan either, as Littler has gone on to hoover up title after title.

‘The Nuke’ became the youngest-ever Premier League winner, hitting a spectacular nine-darter on his way to victory in the final. He has also claimed top honours at the Bahrain Darts Masters, the Polish Darts Masters, the Austrian Darts Open and the Belgian Darts Open. If that wasn’t enough, Littler arrives in Leicester fresh off the back of lifting last month’s World Series of Darts Finals trophy. Thus, he has been priced up as the favourite for World Grand Prix glory.

Only Luke Humphries (700) has hit more 180’s than Littler (667) over the last year, while his 98.75 average is the third-highest on the PDC circuit. A first-round clash with Rob Cross is a big obstacle to overcome, but it would take a brave man to bet against the Warrington wonderkid on current form.

Luke Humphries clinched his first major title when winning last year’s World Grand Prix and he looks well placed at 5.0 to successfully defend his trophy. ‘Cool Hand’ has gone from strength to strength since standing tall in Leicester last year. He went on to scoop both the Grand Slam of Darts and PDC Players Championship Finals titles across the two months that followed.

Humphries then broke new ground by being crowned World Champion for the first time at the start of 2024, and he has since reached the Premier League final before going on to add the the World Matchplay title to his ever-growing trophy cabinet. It’s also worth noting that he excelled when inspiring England to World Cup glory earlier this year.

What makes Humphries’ trophy haul all the more impressive is the fact that he has averaged a PDC-high 98.84 average across the last 12 months of action. On top of this, he ranks highest for 180’s scored over that period with his tally of 700.

Humphries faces a potential banana skin fixture with Stephen Bunting in round one but he has beaten the ‘Bullet’ in three of the last four meetings between the pair.

Michael van Gerwen looks to have rediscovered his mojo, making him an appealing option to win this year’s World Grand Prix at 6.5. The Dutch destroyer was back to his brilliant best when winning his first European Tour title in 16 months at the tail end of September. He delivered a nine-dart finish for good measure, so he should rock up to the Mattioli Arena with confidence restored.

‘Mighty Mike’ also put in a strong showing in Blackpool at this year’s World Matchplay. The three-time world champion made light work of Luke Littler in the opening round before going on to contest the Winter Gardens final with eventual winner Luke Humphries.

His average figures have also been on a steady upward curve in recent months, with his current tally sitting at a sizable 97.41 – the fourth highest across all of the PDC at present.

His path to the latter stages of the World Grand Prix looks more favourable than that of the other market leaders. In fact, he wouldn’t potentially cross paths with either Luke Humphries or Luke Littler until the final. Thus, the Dutchman looks worth backing to go the distance.

Gerwyn Price continues to blow hot and cold on the oche but he merits support to win what would be a second World Grand Prix title at 12.0. The Iceman has performed better than results have suggested this year. That is backed up by the fact that he has averaged a mighty impressive 97.15 since last year’s World Grand Prix, a tally bettered only by Luke Humphries (98.84) Gary Anderson (98.83) Luke Littler (98.75) and Michael van Gerwen (97.41).

His strong seasonal numbers have not gone unrewarded either, as Price has pocketed a pair of World Series of Darts titles this year. The Welshman won the Nordic Darts Masters back in June and then put in a string of sensational displays Down Under to emerge victorious in August’s Australian Darts Masters. Price’s 8-1 thrashing of Luke Littler in the Aussie final was a timely reminder that he remains a force to be reckoned with.

It’s also worth remembering that he reached the 2023 World Grand Prix final, and being housed on what would appear to be the softer side of this year’s draw could see him make another deep run at the Mattioli Arena.

If anyone can upstage the usual suspects at the top of the market, it could be 34.0 dark horse Chris Dobey. ‘Hollywood’ has been throwing some delightful darts in recent months. He ranks ninth for the amount of 180’s thrown over the last year (470) and his 97.09 average across the same timeframe is topped by just five others.

What’s more, and perhaps more importantly, Dobey will be full of confidence after picking up another Pro Tour title with his 8-3 win over Stephen Bunting on Wednesday. The Bedlington-born arrowsmith now has a hat-trick of Pro Tour triumphs to his name this year, making him a lively outsider to make a splash in Leicester.

He should ease himself into the tournament with a win over an out-of-sorts Joe Cullen, and thereafter he will pose a real threat to anyone he crosses paths with. Dobey is also on what is considered to be the more favourable side of the draw bracket, and that only adds to the appeal of backing him at a hefty price.