PETER WRIGHT has been told to ditch the punk Snakebite stage persona.
The World No.31 bowed out of the World Championship in the second round, losing 3-0 to debutant Arno Merk with a below-par 79.20 average.
Peter Wright no longer believes in his Snakebite characterCredit: Getty
Wrighty, 55, endured the , slipping out of the world’s top 16, failing to win a title and not reaching a single major semi-final.
Former pro Matt Edgar reckons Wright should ditch his famous Snakebite look as part of a wider reset to get back to his best.
He told the Mission Podcast: “The interesting thing for me with is that he’s said he doesn’t want to be Snakebite anymore.
“What that suggests is that the character he’s created no longer feels right, because the Peter Wright you see on stage isn’t the Peter Wright you meet backstage.
“That’s not who he really is.
“He isn’t flamboyant, colourful, bouncy or chirpy off the oche — he’s actually quite shy and reserved.
“So, with that, I think the first thing I would suggest to him is be Peter Wright.
“Be who you are if you don’t feel like you’re that character anymore, if you don’t feel you can be that person.
“Peter Wright has probably got to the stage now where he doesn’t believe in Snakebite anymore.
“It is the thing I talk about all the time.
“If you’ve got a lucky pair of socks, and every time I wear my lucky socks I win.
“But then you wear your lucky socks and you lose. The mystique has gone.
“Snakebite used to sit in interviews and go, ‘I’m going to go win this,’ and he did. Now he says the same things and he doesn’t.
“The 100 per cent belief in ‘I do what I say’ is gone.
Previous World Darts Championship winners
The list does not include winners from the pre-Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) era or BDO world champions.
That means Raymond van Barneveld, for example, is only listed once – Barney also won four BDO titles – and none of Eric Bristow’s five BDO titles are included.
- 1994 – Dennis Priestley
- 1995 – Phil Taylor
- 1996 – Phil Taylor (2)
- 1997 – Phil Taylor (3)
- 1998 – Phil Taylor (4)
- 1999 – Phil Taylor (5)
- 2000 – Phil Taylor (6)
- 2001 – Phil Taylor (7)
- 2002 – Phil Taylor (8)
- 2003 – John Part
- 2004 – Phil Taylor (9)
- 2005 – Phil Taylor (10)
- 2006 – Phil Taylor (11)
- 2007 – Raymond van Barneveld
- 2008 – John Part (2)
- 2009 – Phil Taylor (12)
- 2010 – Phil Taylor (13)
- 2011 – Adrian Lewis
- 2012 – Adrian Lewis (2)
- 2013 – Phil Taylor (14)
- 2014 – Michael van Gerwen
- 2015 – Gary Anderson
- 2016 – Gary Anderson (2)
- 2017 – Michael van Gerwen (2)
- 2018 – Rob Cross
- 2019 – Michael van Gerwen (3)
- 2020 – Peter Wright
- 2021 – Gerwyn Price
- 2022 – Peter Wright (2)
- 2023 – Michael Smith
- 2024 – Luke Humphries
- 2025 – Luke Littler
- 2026 – Luke Littler (2)
Most World Titles
- 14 – Phil Taylor
- 3 – Michael van Gerwen
- 2 – John Part, Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Peter Wright, Luke Littler
- 1 – Dennis Priestley, Raymond van Barneveld, Rob Cross, Gerwyn Price, Michael Smith, Luke Humphries
“He needs to reinvent himself now and . That would be my stance on that one.”
But, prior to the Worlds, the punk Snakebite look.
He said: “That was only in Minehead because I was on stage two and I know they only show the last three darts in your match, if you’re lucky.
“So there’s no point dressing up and having my hair done and everything.
“I’ll still be Snakebite, unfortunately. I’ve created the monster and I’ve still got to stick with it.”
Eze Chidiebere Paul
I'm dedicated to creating high-quality content that informs, inspires, and delights. If you have any questions or suggestions, don't hesitate to get in touch. Happy reading!
