I came through darts ranks with Luke Littler, I’m 100 per cent sure me and him will dominate the sport for decades

JOSH ROCK is backing himself and rival Luke Littler to dominate darts for DECADES to come.

The 23-year-old regularly faced off against The Nuke as the pair rose up through the ranks together.

Rock, current World No. 16, has bagged four PDC ranking titles in his career so far.

The Northern Irishman had been tipped for big things after winning the World Youth Darts Championship in 2022.

But has has yet to make it past the quarter-final stage of a major TV event.

Rock watched on as Littler - then aged just 16 - stunned the world by reaching the 2024 PDC World Championship final.

Littler returned a year later to beat Michael van Gerwen at Ally Pally and become the youngest-ever world champion.

And Rocky believes Littler's rise proves there has been a changing of the guard.

He told : "It is fantastic for the sport.

"Luke winning the Worlds at such a young age shows it is a young man's sport now."

Rock won the Dutch Darts Championship last year and progressed past the second round of the World Championships for a third consecutive year.

BEST FREE BET SIGN UP OFFERS FOR UK BOOKMAKERS

And he believes his game is in good shape ahead of a packed schedule ahead.

He continued: "I had a solid 2024 but honestly I think 2025 is going to be my year."

"My game is there to challenge, it always has been, it just has to come out when it needs to.

"I 100 per cent believe it. There is six years between me and Luke.

"We can have a very long career, and I believe that me and him will dominate the sport."

Late last year, Rock admitted he is happy playing second-fiddle to darts' newest sensation.

And he believes with the focus elsewhere, his talents can eventually shine through.

Rock told Het Nieuwsblad: "None of [the attention on Littler] bothers me. I like to fly under the radar, no problem at all.

";Luke can claim all the attention and therefore take the pressure off me.

"I’m happy with how I’m pitching the past few months and you can’t quite compare the hype either, so let me do it quietly.

"I was a star boy, he’s a star boy now. It’s really from a different level. He doesn't care either.

"We're good friends and I talk to him often, and that’s what I often say to him: ‘You really don't care about anything, do you?’

I was a star boy, he’s a star boy now.

Josh Rock

"He handles all the attention much better than I do. So let him be the star!"

Littler, 18, and Rock are currently preparing for the upcoming World Masters.

The tournament has undergone a huge revamp, which includes the adoption of the old best-of-three-legs per set format.

Rock faces off with in-form Jermaine Wattimena in his first-round match on Thursday.

While Littler, fresh from disappointment at the Dutch Masters, takes on Andy Baetens.