Who is the favourite in this year’s Premier League Darts?

Darts fanatics have been waiting for theirweekly fix, and they finally have it in the form of the 19th edition of PremierLeague Darts, with eight of the best players in the world battling it out forthe £275,000 prize.

The competition started on February 2nd at The SSE Arena,Belfast, and already there’s plenty to talk about. Two rounds of Premier Leagueaction have produced four different finalists so expect another wide-open andkeenly-contested night at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow. Chris Dobey has taken anearly lead in the standings with one night win and three game wins under hisbelt after the opening two nights. The chasing pack comprises Gerwyn Price,Michael Van Gerwen and Nathan Aspinall who are hot on his coattails each withfive points. Peter Wright has had a rough start to the tournament without asingle win to his name thus far, but will a return to home soil ignite hisPremier League campaign? Here’s everything you need to know about PremierLeague Darts ahead of week three in Glasgow.

Before a dart was thrown reigning championMichael Van Gerwen was the frontrunner to claim the Premier League crown onceagain and after the first two nights, it’s hard to see past MVG. Those wantingto bet on the darts Premier League should be usingapps for betting in the uk when they do. The legendary Dutchman ischasing a record-breaking seventh Premier League title and looks well situatedto do so even after failing to claim victory in Belfast and Cardiff. TheDutchman is arguably the most talented man on the card, averaging 110.75 indefeat last week against Gerwyn Price in the semi-finals. Van Gerwen's averageof 102.36 across his five matches so far is considerably higher than anyoneelse, a warning to the field that he has brought his form from the PDC WorldChampionship to this competition. He will want to maintain that momentum butwill have his hands full with Nathan Aspinall at the Hydro. The 2020 runner-upfinds himself a dark horse in this contest thanks to success in recent monthsincluding televised performances at the World Grand Prix and the Grand Slam ofDarts. Aspinall, who is yet to lose a quarter-final, was on fire in Cardiffwhen averaging 105 against both Peter Wright and Michael Smith only to run outof steam against Price; the world number 10 looks up to the task to stake hisclaim to the title.

The Iceman, Gerwyn Price, came into PremierLeague Darts this year in some turbulent form. Following his recent first-roundlosses at both the Masters and the PDC World Championship, triumph here seemedto be too tall of an order, but his victory on home soil in Cardiff on night twohas put him back on track to challenge for the title. After coming through adeciding leg with Chris Dobey, he managed to take Michael van Gerwen to thewire in the semi-finals despite averaging almost 14 points less than theDutchman's incredible 110.75 before the home fans whistles came to his rescue.The final against Nathan Aspinall was much more routine, winning 6-3, but hisoverall performances won’t exactly strike any fear into his opponent inGlasgow. World champion Michael Smith is the man that stands in his way inGlasgow and the World number one hasenjoyed plenty of success as of late. Bully Boy got his first points of theseason by defeating Jonny Clayton 6-3 with an average of 100 but was outfoughtby Nathan Aspinall in the semi-finals. Although he's averaged over 100 twice inhis three games so far, he's bizarrely struggling to find his maximum range,with just four hit so far at a meagre 0.14 per leg. He will have to improve ifhe is to lift the Premier League Darts trophy in May.

World number two, Peter Wright, looked goodvalue this year to better his 2017 runner-up performance and secure his firstPremier League title, as he makes his tenth consecutive Premier Leagueappearance. However, it has not been smooth sailing thus far. The Scot hasfailed to register a single point in the tournament following a disappointingPDC World Championship. The two-time world champion did manage to reach thesemi-finals of the Masters and looked in good form and darts fans will be awareof the threat that Wright poses once he gets up to speed. He can’t be countedout just yet. The man he’ll have to overcome in his own backyard is Dimitri Vanden Bergh. The Belgian has made progress in the last few months, making it allthe way to the World Championship semi-finals just falling short against a gameMichael Van Gerwen. He also secured two World Series titles and if he couldreplicate that form in this tournament he’ll cause plenty of problems for thefield. However, his usual scoring powerhas been lacking somewhat. He currently sits mid-table on two points but facesWright who has only beaten three times in 16 matches. He’ll need a win on thestage in Glasgow to remain in contention.

Chris Dobey is certainly making the most ofhis Premier League Darts debut, racing to the top of the table after a stunning victory over reigning champion Van Gerwen inBelfast on night one of the tournament. Newly-crowned Masterschampion Dobey stunned the field with a hat-trick of victories to cap off alife-changing seven days for the 32-year-old. Even after losing the openinggame to Price on night two, the sensational 160 checkout to secure victory inBelfast is proof he has taken to Premier League Darts like a duck to water.He’ll be looking to emulate the success of his counterpart in Glasgow, JonnyClayton. Clayton won the Premier League on his debut but is yet to replicatethe form that saw him claim that accolade. will be frustrated about his startto the season from a results perspective but his performance levels in 2023overall suggest a change in fortune is just around the corner. Apart from lastweek's 89.37 during a 6-3 defeat to Michael Smith, he's been averaging in thehigh 90s on stage so far while he produced some similarly strong displays onthe Pro Tour. The Welshman is not considered one of the favourites for thecompetition this year but he certainly has it in his locker to rattle a fewcages. The landscape is starting to take shape but there’s still a long way togo before we get to the O2 on May 25.