Premier League Darts Night 4 Picks 2026 (Thursday 26th February)

The motivational factor is going to be a key to the scheduling that Luke Littler puts together for the 2026 season and it says plenty that he has skipped all of the floor events.

That may have been a reason that Littler has not really begun his Premier League campaign nearly as strongly as the last two, but he may feel he has time over the sixteen nights to rack up enough points to avoid missing the Playoffs.

And to further the motivational angle, Luke Littler has already won titles at the World Masters and the first European Tour event of the season last week in Krakow.

Five wins took him to the title and Luke Littler averaged in triple figures four times, while also overcoming a nine darter from Gian van Veen in the Final.

The latter has continued what has been a find start to the 2026 season to follow from reaching the World Championship Final and he will be happy with how the opening three nights in his Premier League debut have developed.

Jonny Clayton and Gerwyn Price have continued strong starts to the season, while Michael van Gerwen will be hoping that his illness that forced a withdrawal in Glasgow will not have a long-term impact on his own ability to make the Play Offs again.

Both Lukes- Littler and Humphries- have made slower starts than expected, but both are playing well enough to believe they will begin to have the results to back up the performances.

The big pressure going into Night 4 will be on Stephen Bunting and Josh Rock who have lost all three Premier League matches played- the former had an awful 2025 and needs something to change quickly, while Rock is going to be playing in front of his home supporters in Belfast as he looks to get his debut season up and running.

The return from the opening European Tour event was a solid one and has pushed the season totals back towards a positive direction.

Some of the early Premier League picks have been really close to coming through, but a bit of fortune has been missing, which also made a welcome return in Poland over last weekend.

Hopefully that pushes through into Night 4 on Thursday and Night 5 next week before the big Ranking event of the UK Open takes place.

Luke Littler over 3.5 180s & Jonny Clayton over 2.5 180s: It was Jonny Clayton who went on and won Night 3 to continue his fantastic return to the Premier League.

He will head over to Belfast as the Premier League standings leader and Clayton will be keen to back up the strong win over Luke Littler.

Beating Littler is always going to be a result to be admired, but Jonny Clayton beat him 6-1 in the Semi Final in Glasgow and he has averaged 99 or higher in each of the three Quarter Final wins. The Welshman has made no secret of his enjoyment in being back in the Premier League and Clayton continues to hit plenty of big maximums to build pressure.

He had four in the win over Luke Littler last week, but that total was matched by the World Number 1 who continues to pound the red bit.

Backing the World Champion to hit four in this one is always going to go close, while Clayton should at least have enough chances to try and reach a minimum of three even in Legs where he is outscored.

Luke Humphries to win & most 180s: There is a massive mental hurdle for Stephen Bunting to overcome after making another miserable start to a Premier League campaign.

Both of these players decided to skip the Players Championship events earlier this week, but Luke Humphries did not have to play particularly well to beat Stephen Bunting last weekend in Krakow.

He did have more maximums in the straightforward 6-1 win in the Polish Open and Luke Humphries has been playing well, without necessarily having the results to back that up.

You do have to say that Stephen Bunting has put together some decent averages in his opening three losses in the Premier League, but those have piled up and Luke Humphries may power past him again.

With his new darts in hand, Luke Humphries has been hitting the maximums more effectively early in 2026 and can use that big scoring to help him into another Semi Final on a Premier League night.

Gerwyn Price to win & most 180s: He did not take part in the Polish Open and an opening defeat in Players Championship 5 followed the Quarter Final loss to Jonny Clayton last week in Glasgow.

However, Gerwyn Price has continued to play at a high level and won the title at Players Championship 5 behind some big scoring.

The Welshman has won his last two matches against Michael van Gerwen and there has to be some questions about how the Dutchman is feeling after illness forced him to miss Night 3, as well as the Polish Open and both Players Championship events earlier this week.

No one can deny that van Gerwen has begun this season looking much more like his old self, but he will need to be at full health to beat Gerwyn Price on current form.

Michael van Gerwen has been scoring well, but he may need a few more days to really feel like he is over the illness he was dealing with last week and Price can do enough to win this Quarter Final.

Both have been pretty good at hitting the maximums, but again this is perhaps targeting the fact that van Gerwen may not be operating at full tilt and that could see the World Number 10 hit a couple more 180s to bring in the double.

Josh Rock v Gian van Veen: These two players are both debutants in the Premier League, but they have had very different early experiences.

Gian van Veen has reached the Final on two of the three nights played, while Josh Rock has lost every match in the tournament by the same 6-2 scoreline.

So why back Rock to end that here?

For starters he is playing in front of a home crowd that are going to be completely behind him and that could be something that potentially rattles his opponent.

He looked in decent nick in Poland last weekend, and there has not been a great deal in the early averages with Gian van Veen perhaps showing a bit more composure at key times.

Josh Rock was not very good in Antwerp and later blamed that on product he used to wash his hands, but he had not played badly last week and was perhaps a little unfortunate to run into Luke Humphries in the Quarter Final.

And for all his success so far this season, Gian van Veen has perhaps still not been quite operating at his best and will need to deal with the hostile crowd that is expected to be firmly behind the home player.

Finally you cannot ignore the fact that Josh Rock has won the last four between the plaeyrs, which will certainly help him clear the mind and focus here. A couple of European Tour wins and a victory at the Grand Slam means Rock has found those wins in big settings and he may use the crowd to fire him up for long enough to edge past the Dutchman and secure his first points in the Premier League.

MY PICKS: Luke Littler Over 3.5 180s & Jonny Clayton Over 2.5 180s @ 2.37 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Luke Humphries to Win & Most 180s @ 2.30 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Gerwyn Price to Win & Most 180s @ 3.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Josh Rock @ 2.50 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Darts 2026: 16-20, - 1.78 Units (35 Units Staked, - 5.09% Yield)

Tennis Picks 2026 (Thursday 26th February)

The selections this week have been focusing on the ATP Dubai tournament, but the events in Acapulco and Santiago are moving into the business end too.

Of course the Final in the Middle East events are scheduled for Saturday so Dubai is a little further along compared with the other tournaments.

Any selections from the other two events will be added to this thread on Thursday, but there are three picks from the ATP Dubai Quarter Final matches that are set to be played through the day.

Daniil Medvedev - 4.5 games v Jenson Brooksby: This has been a solid couple of days for Daniil Medvedev, but he will not want to lose any momentum in Dubai with solid Ranking Points on offer.

It is also an opportunity for Daniil Medvedev to regain a bit of lost confidence and perhaps win a second title of the season before the Tour moves to North America for two big Masters events. He is not going to be able to crack the top ten again in the World Rankings, but Medvedev has some important Ranking Points to protect at the Indian Wells Masters and would love to head to California with another trophy to add to his collection.

Two strong wins have shown the Daniil Medvedev strength.

The first serve has been a big weapon, and it has allowed the World Number 11 to have a real aggressive approach to the return, which has resulted in at least four Breaks in each match won. Daniil Medvedev has been keeping opponents under constant pressure with his return of serve and that is going to be the ambition he will be looking to show once again in this Quarter Final.

Credit has to be given to Jenson Brooksby for winning a couple of matches here this week having shown little form prior to the tournament beginning in Dubai.

He may not have impressed as much as Medvedev, but Jenson Brooksby has not dropped serve this week and that will give him some confidence to take into the match.

The level has been higher than what has been seen in the 2026 season and so Brooksby may be playing with a bit more belief in what he is trying to do.

Even then, it may be asking too much for the World Number 49 to find the right tennis to earn an upset and it could also be tough for Jenson Brooksby to keep the scoreboard competitive if things start poorly.

When these two players met previously on the Tour, it was Daniil Medvedev who ended up pulling away after a competitive first set, but this one could potentially be a bit more routine.

Felix Auger Aliassime-Jiri Lehecka over 0.5 Tie Breakers: A poor run Down Under that culminated in a First Round exit at the Australian Open in a match that Felix Auger Aliassime was unable to finish will have been a cause for concern for his fans.

Those have been eased after the Canadian returned to the Tour to win the title in Montpellier and follow up by reaching the Rotterdam Final before coming up short against Alex De Minaur.

Two wins in the tournament in Dubai has maintained the strong form and Felix Auger Aliassime will move into the top six of the World Rankings by winning the title in Dubai. The serve has been a huge weapon in 2026 with 92% of games ending in holds and Auger Aliassime has impressed by finding a Break in 20% of return games played.

Throughout his career, Felix Auger Aliassime has struggled for consistency on the return and so his form this year will offer a huge amount of encouragement.

The Quarter Final will not be easy against Jiri Lehecka who also struggled through the opening weeks of the season before finding some form last week. He reached the Quarter Final in Doha and has backed that up in Dubai, although Jiri Lehecka has benefited by beating two opponents Ranked outside of the top 100.

Felix Auger Aliassime deserves to be favourite, but the two hard court matches between the players have both been dominated by the server.

In those, Auger Aliassime has held 97% of service games played and Lehecka is at 92% and you have to feel that this is going to be a match where both should be able to roll through service games.

These two players have had to play seven sets on the hard courts against one another and four of those have needed a Tie-Breaker to determine the outcome.

It certainly looks overpriced to have at least one Breaker in this Quarter Final with the serving prowess that both possess and that looks the right play.

Andrey Rublev - 3.5 games v Arthur Rinderknech: He has always been a comfortable performer on the hard courts, but Andrey Rublev had a dip in form in 2025. With that in mind, Andrey Rublev will be much happier with the way things have begun in 2026 and he will make a big move back towards the top ten in the World Rankings if he can win the title in Dubai.

He has twice reached the Semi Final in hard court events this season and Andrey Rublev is looking to at least match that run by coming through this Quarter Final and backing up the run in Doha.

Holding serve in 89% of service games and backing that up with Breaks in 25% of return games will make Andrey Rublev tough to beat and he gave Carlos Alcaraz something to think about in coming up short last week.

In two wins this week, Andrey Rublev has yet to drop serve, but he has perhaps not been as composed when the Break Points have come his way. Five Breaks have been secured in two wins, but Andrey Rublev has needed 25 Break Points to do that and he will need to be a little more efficient against a server like Arthur Rinderknech.

The World Number 31 did win a match at the United Cup, but he had lost early in Melbourne, Rotterdam and Doha and wins over two players who were Ranked 200 or lower in the Davis Cup would not have given Arthur Rinderknech much confidence. That makes the two wins here in Dubai will have been a boost, especially the victory over Jack Draper who is Ranked considerably higher than the Frenchman.

Arthur Rinderknech has dropped a set in both wins this week, but his serve is still a big weapon with 89% of games ending in holds.

He has offered little in the returning department, but has made use of the moments when Rinderknech has found a way into those returning games here in Dubai.

It may be more difficult to do that against Andrey Rublev who has won all three previous matches against Arthur Rinderknech and all of those have been on the hard courts.

The lower Ranked player has not only struggled for consistency on the return, but Arthur Rinderknech has allowed Andrey Rublev to Break in 30% of return games played against him.

In the 2024 US Open, Arthur Rinderknech will have felt he should have beaten Andrey Rublev having moved two sets ahead, but the current form suggests this one should be a match that the World Number 18 can eventually control and cover the handicap set.

MY PICKS: Daniil Medvedev - 4.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Victor (1 Unit)

Felix Auger Aliassime-Jiri Lehecka Over 0.5 Tie-Breakers @ 1.91 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Andrey Rublev - 3.5 Games @ 1.85 William Hill (1 Unit)

Weekly Update: 4-1, + 2.53 Units (5 Units Staked, + 50.60% Yield)

Tennis Picks 2026 (Wednesday 25th February)

Last week was a tough one for the Tennis Picks and that has dented some of the early numbers, which have been updated below.

At least Tuesday proved to be a decent start to the next set of tournaments to be completed before the entire Tour moves to Indian Wells.

The opening selections on Wednesday are from the ATP Dubai event, but any additions from the other ATP 500 event in Acapulco will be added to this thread.

Daniil Medvedev - 4.5 games v Stan Wawrinka: A crushing win in the First Round has moved Daniil Medvedev into a match with a veteran having one last hurrah on the Tour.

As far as we know, Stan Wawrinka is going to be retiring at the end of the 2026 season, even if some are speculating that he may choose to play on if he can maintain the current levels being produced. He has been able to rejoin the top 100 of the World Rankings and Wawrinka had little issue in coming through his own First Round match, although the level of opponent picks up considerably on Wednesday.

The older player has been relying very much on the strong serving to put himself in a position to win matches, but Stan Wawrinka has found it very difficult on the return. That has led to plenty of defeats in 2026, but he is outperforming expectation levels and Stan Wawrinka has a 2-3 record on the hard courts when only considering matches played against top 100 Ranked opponents.

Daniil Medvedev has been struggling to back up his own serve as effectively as he will need if he is going to win big titles, but there has been little wrong with the return.

In the First Round, Medvedev broken the Juncheng Shang serve four times and ended up producing a comfortable win over Stan Wawrinka when these two last faced one another on the Tour in Rotterdam in February 2025.

The line is a dangerous one if Stan Wawrinka continues to serve as well as he has been in the opening weeks of the season.

However, you do have to feel that Daniil Medvedev can force his way into enough rallies to eventually create the Break Points needed to have a chance of covering and he can wear down the veteran over the course of a couple of hours on the court in Dubai.

Karen Khachanov - 2.5 games v Jenson Brooksby: It has been a difficult start to 2026 for Jenson Brooksby who had suffered opening Round defeats in Melbourne, Dallas and Doha. Prior to the arrival in Dubai, Brooksby had only earned a single win on the Tour in 2026 and that was against an opponent Ranked way outside the top 500.

It makes his First Round win in this tournament feel really important and especially as it came against an in-form Zizou Bergs.

Now the American has to face another player who is producing some confident tennis when taking on Karen Khachanov- last week Khachanov reached the Doha Quarter Final before losing in a tough battle against Carlos Alcaraz. Karen Khachanov has to be really happy about his run in Doha and the World Number 16 has been playing with more confidence compared with his opponent.

Holding onto 89% of his service games will always give Karen Khachanov a chance to win matches.

You may not always see Karen Khachanov as a really strong return player, but his numbers on the hard courts have tended to be solid enough. We have not seen him find the consistency on the return in 2026 compared with the numbers he has produced in recent years, but Khachanov may feel he can put plenty of pressure on Jenson Brooksby and his 78% service games held mark.

Two previous matches on the hard courts have ended with each of these players winning once- the most recent of those have been won by Karen Khachanov in Cincinnati last summer as the Tour continued building up towards the final Grand Slam of the season.

Prior to that, Jenson Brooksby beat Khachanov in Indian Wells, but that was back in 2022 and it is the higher Ranked player who looks to be putting together enough quality tennis to frank the victory earned on the hard courts several months ago.

Tallon Griekspoor-Alexander Bublik over 0.5 Tie-Breakers: This is going to be the fifth time that these two opponents are meeting on the Tour and it is Alexander Bublik who has won all of the previous four.

All of those wins have been on the hard courts with the most recent being right here in Dubai two years ago and Alexander Bublik looks to be playing with a lot more joy and confidence on the hard courts.

That has seen him open 2026 with a 12-3 record on a surface that Bublik has openly disparaged, and he has been really dominant behind serve with 88% of service games ending holds. This has been the important part of the wins that have been produced, but Bublik still needs to find some improvement on the return of serve with just 18% of return games ending with a Break.

He will know what to expect from Tallon Griekspoor, although Bublik will have to respect the fact that the World Number 25 looks to have fully come out of a slump in form to open the season.

Tallon Griekspoor lost his first four matches this year, including his opening match at the Australian Open, but he has reached a couple of Quarter Finals on the hard courts of Montpellier and Rotterdam. Those are indoor hard court events, but Griekspoor is going to hope he can continue to find some rhythm on the serve with the full knowledge that his return has not been good enough or consistent enough on the hard courts.

In 2026, Griekspoor has only broken in 10% of return games played and you have to believe that the serve is going to be extremely important for both players.

In the previous four matches, Tallon Griekspoor and Alexander Bublik have competed in nine sets- six of those have needed Tie-Breakers, including both played here in Dubai a couple of years ago and they may need at least one in this Second Round match.

MY PICKS: Daniil Medvedev - 4.5 Games @ 2.10 Bet Victor (1 Unit)

Karen Khachanov - 2.5 Games @ 1.85 William Hill (1 Unit)

Tallon Griekspoor-Alexander Bublik Over 0.5 Tie-Breakers @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Weekly Update: 2-0, + 1.63 Units (2 Units Staked, + 81.50% Yield)

Season 2026: 54-44, + 9.96 Units (164 Units Staked, + 6.07% Yield)

Tennis Picks 2026 (Tuesday 24th February)

The Tennis Tour continues this week with the ATP 500 events being the big tournaments to be played, while the WTA Tour turns its attentions to the upcoming Indian Wells Masters.

The majority of the top names will be finally earning some rest after the controversial swing through the Middle East, and the same will apply in the main for the top names on the ATP Tour. None of these events are mandatory for the latter, while that is not the case for those on the WTA Tour and that is something that will need to be addressed.

On Tuesday, any selections from the ATP Acapulco event will be added to this thread and the season total will also be updated.

Daniil Medvedev - 4.5 games v Juncheng Shang: This is the second time during the Middle East swing that these two players are facing off and Daniil Medvedev is expected to frank his win over Juncheng Shang.

The Australian Open run ended very disappointingly and Medvedev has struggled for some consistency since then.

He has now lost three of the last four matches played, but the exception is the win over Juncheng Shang in Doha and Daniil Medvedev is still playing at a level that should be too good for the World Number 262.

Injuries have contributed to that World Ranking mark for a 21 year old who was as high as World Number 47 less than eighteen months ago. Juncheng Shang has a 3-3 record on the hard courts at the start of the 2026 season, but the losses have all been pretty comfortable and that means the numbers being produced are not very impressive.

Juncheng Shang does have a serve that can cause problems, but he has only been breaking in 14% of return games played, which has put pressure to serve well. He was not able to impose that shot on Daniil Medvedev in Doha with the second serve in particular being a shot that was attacked by the higher Ranked player and that saw Shang broken three times.

The Daniil Medvedev serve is not as potent a weapon as you would expect for a former Grand Slam Champion, but the World Number 11 has long been someone who can rattle opponents with his return of serve. This year Medvedev has been breaking in 31% of return games played and he will have learned plenty about the opponent when beating him pretty convincingly in Doha.

It may not be quite as wide as that win last week, but Daniil Medvedev can be backed to cover the same line that was presented to him in the other tournament taking place on this Middle East swing.

Jakub Mensik-Hubert Hurkacz over 0.5 Tie-Breakers: When they met at the Australian Open in January 2024, Jakub Mensik was an 18 year old trying to make an impact on the Tour, while Hubert Hurkacz was a top ten Ranked player.

The match lasted five sets before Hurkacz was able to pull through and the big Pole earned another win over Jakub Mensik last year on the clay courts of Rome.

That time it was Jakub Mensik who was Ranked higher than Hubert Hurkacz, but a bigger gap has developed between the players ahead of this latest match up in Dubai.

Only ten places separated them in May 2025, but now Mensik is on the edge of cracking the top ten of the World Rankings, while Hubert Hurkacz has slipped out of the top 50 as injuries and a loss of form have become contributing factors.

Hubert Hurkacz won four matches at the United Cup in the build up to the Australian Open, but has lost every match played since winning a First Round contest in Melbourne. The serve continues to be a huge weapon, but Hurkacz has been struggling on the return and that has led to a number of disappointing results at tournaments that have been played.

Jakub Mensik had been playing well in Melbourne, but was forced to give Novak Djokovic a walkover as he was not fit enough to take his place on the court. That has been one of the disappointing aspects of his career so far with injuries needing to be overcome, but Mensik has shown plenty of mental resolve and he bounced back to reach the Semi Final in Doha last week.

He has already won a title on the hard courts and Jakub Mensik will be confident enough in his serve, even if the numbers are a little below expectations- he has won 65% of service points played, but that has only led to 81% of service holds as he has perhaps struggled to win the big points.

However, the likelihood is that Mensik is not going to be facing a lot of Break Points in this one as long as he serves as he has been, while his own return is not expected to have the same impact against a server as effective as his opponent.

The younger player should eventually prevail, but it could be similar to the Doha Semi Final where you have to believe the servers can do just enough to force at least one Tie-Breaker.

In the two previous matches which have had eight sets played, three have needed Tie-Breakers and Jakub Mensik was not broken in the match on a clay court last year. In that one he took one Break Point, but a faster surface should suit both when it comes to the serving power and it would be a surprise if at least one of the sets is not decided by a first to seven point situation.

MY PICKS: Daniil Medvedev - 4.5 Games @ 2.10 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Jakub Mensik-Hubert Hurkacz Over 0.5 Tie-Breakers @ 1.53 Bet365 (1 Unit)

European Tour 1- Poland Open Darts Day 3 Picks 2026 (Sunday 22nd February)

There were upsets on Day 2 as the top players on the Tour competed at the Polish Open Darts for the first time and the first European Tour event of the 2026 season will come to a close on Sunday.

Despite one or two players being dumped out unexpectedly, most of the leading contenders have fought through and the Third Round is set to be played in the Day Session.

Any selections from the Quarter Final matches, or any Outright Picks, will be added after the Round is completed around 4pm.

UPDATE: The Quarter Final lineup has been put together, but it has been a strong tournament for the Darts Picks from the first European Tour of the season.

Selections have been added for the Evening Session with the World Number 1 the feature.

Luke Littler to win & over 3.5 180s v Ross Smith: He won the World Masters, but Luke Littler has perhaps been lacking some motivation over the last couple of weeks having withdrawn from the opening Players Championship events.

The early form in the Premier League has been underwhelming, but Luke Littler is keen on becoming the first Champion of this European Tour event.

The performance in the win over Mike De Dekker was really impressive and Littler will know that he will need to keep that level up if he is going to get past Ross Smith and other players in the draw to take home the title at the end of the evening.

Matching the Smith scoring power is always key and Luke Littler can do that, although he will be aware that Ross Smith has had a solid week on the circuit.

Ross Smith was a comfortable winner in the Second Round, but he may struggle to deal with the overall strength of the Littler game and both should produce plenty of maximum hitting.

Jonny Clayton & Michael Smith over 2.5 180s: These two veteran players of the Tour met four times in 2025 and Jonny Clayton won three of those.

With that said and factoring in recent form, you can understand why Jonny Clayton is favoured to beat Michael Smith.

Both were playing well in the Second Round on Saturday and dishing out plenty of maximum hitting, although it can be tough to replicate that kind of level.

There is less to be concerned about when it comes to Clayton considering the overall form he has been producing throughout 2026, but Michael Smith is a lot more inconsistent these days.

His maximum power helped him past Joe Cullen, and Michael Smith did win six matches in European Tour 3 and European Tour 4 Qualifying before heading over to Krakow. That will have given Bully Boy confidence and this is a Third Round match that is expected to need at least nine Legs played, which will give both players a chance to hit at least three maximums.

Luke Littler to win & most 180s v Josh Rock: You have to like the way Josh Rock has been playing this weekend, but he has struggled at the Premier League level.

This is the kind of match up he has been struggling with and Luke Littler looks to be in very motivated form after crushing Ross Smith in the Third Round.

He had far too much for Rock at the World Masters and Littler's power scoring did for Ross Smith earlier in the day.

Luke Humphries to win & over 2.5 180s: He may not have been very happy with the crowd on Saturday, but Luke Humphries managed to get past the home favourite and has comfortably made his way into the Poland Open Quarter Final.

He faces Premier League rival Stephen Bunting in this Round and Luke Humphries has already gotten the better of him on the floor this season.

Last year Luke Humphries won three of the four Premier League games against Bunting and he managed three maximums in the win over Boris Krcmar.

He can match that in another winning effort to make it through to the Semi Final.

MY PICKS: Luke Littler to Win & Over 3.5 180s @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Jonny Clayton & Michael Smith Both Over 2.5 180s @ 2.60 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Luke Littler to Win & Most 180s @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Luke Humphries to Win & Over 2.5 180s @ 2.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Poland Open: 6-4, + 1.87 Units (10 Units Staked, + 18.70% Yield)

Boxing Picks 2026- Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia (Saturday 21st February)

You never want to make a lot of assumptions, but there is clearly a feeling amongst those who follow Boxing that something has changed for the United Kingdom Promoters who had been in lockstep with Riyadh Season over the last couple of years.

That has meant a lot of the big fights have ended up in Saudi Arabia, but Turki Alalshikh has joined forces with Dana White and TKO to produce a new 'Boxing League' and that has perhaps meant less interest in partnering up with the likes of Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn.

The latter of those Promoters is still having some work together with the Saudis, but there seems to have been a real breakdown between Turki Alalshikh and Frank Warren.

Of course nothing has been said, but it is interesting that the WBO World Heavyweight Title will be defending in Manchester, while Callum Smith vs David Morrell heads up a card in Liverpool.

That fight and Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois are the kind of bouts that have not really been seen over in the United Kingdom over the last eighteen months and rumour will continue to swirl that all is not well between the big parties involved.

Ultimately it matters little to fans of the sport as long as the big fights are being made and there are several big cards taking place between April and May.

Before all that, we have a big fight taking place in Las Vegas this weekend when the WBC World Welterweight Title is on the line- the Division is still looking for a dominant force to come through and take over from the likes of Terence Crawford and Jaron Ennis who had been the leading names in the 147 pound Division.

And while the headliner in Nottingham is between two fighters who are perhaps past their best and the days when they won World Titles, fans have to be really excited about seeing Leigh Wood vs Josh Warrington for the second time.

Two weeks ago, Britain lost a World Champion when Nick Ball was Stopped in the final Round by Brandon Figueroa and it was a missed opportunity for the Boxing Picks.

My feeling was that Figueroa might not have gotten a fair crack if the fight went to the cards, but he was someone that I wrote I would have backed in any neutral setting.

The last twelve months have been a little like that when not quite having the full conviction to follow through with a Pick and being disappointed at missing out.

2026 is still a long year and there are plenty of opportunities in front so you cannot be thinking backwards and instead have to stick to the plan and look for that to reap its own rewards.

Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia

There is a huge amount of controversy around Ryan Garcia- he has been Stopped by Gervonta Davis and the win over Devin Haney is massively tainted after Garcia failed a drugs test.

The last time we saw Ryan Garcia he was being dropped in the Second Round and putting in a listless performance in losing to Rolly Romero.

Of course that has been seen as good enough for the WBC to allow their Champion to fight Ryan Garcia having kept the latter in the top four of the Rankings(!)

The Welterweight Division is lacking real star power, although Devin Haney is now holding the WBO World Title and there is a natural rivalry with Garcia that can be explored further if the 27 year old is able to win the WBC World Title.

It is hard to know what to expect from Ryan Garcia who has won one of the last four fights if you consider the Devin Haney bout a No Contest.

He does feel like a fighter who has a big reputation without actually having proved he deserves that in the ring and Ryan Garcia is going to have a tough day in the office if he is not fully prepared.

However, it has long been stated that Mario Barrios may be one of the weakest World Champions in ANY Division and he has only managed to earn two Draws since being upgraded from Interim to full World Champion.

To say his run has been underwhelming would be an understatement and the last time anyone saw Mario Barrios, he had just drawn with Manny Pacquiao who had not fought in four years.

Prior to that, Mario Barrios had been given another Draw with Abel Ramos in a controversial Decision and that was against an opponent who had lost three of the previous five bouts.

So many people have thought about targeting Barrios for an 'easy' World Title bid, but he has managed to retain the support of the WBC and this will be just the third defence of this Title since October 2024.

Both fighters have come up short when they have stepped up their level and that makes the World Title clash tougher to call, but you have to feel that Ryan Garcia has the higher ceiling. He cannot afford to think he can coast to a win though and will have to put together a lot more intensity than he showed in the loss to Romero last year, while inactivity has been a real issue for both (at least Ryan Garcia had an 'excuse' of being given a ban after his failed test following the Devin Haney clash).

The winning fighter may be presented with a few opportunities, but you have to imagine most at the top of the sport would prefer that to be Ryan Garcia.

He does have the faster hands and the flashier combinations, while Mario Barrios will want to dig in and make this a rough fight.

Ryan Garcia does carry some power though and that may end up being the difference in the Championship Rounds of this World Title fight, although he needs to put together a really strong effort to impress and erase the memories of some of those recent outings.

There will be some expectation on Ryan Garcia to make a statement and perhaps push through the gears and Stop Mario Barrios, but he may have to settle in becoming World Champion thanks to the Judges.

This is a card being headed up by Riyadh Season and The Ring Magazine, which means there is a healthy looking undercard that has been put together.

Young prospect Amari Jones can continue his move up towards the top of the Middleweight Division, which could soon have a number of vacant World Titles available if Janibek Alimkhanuly is banned after failing a drugs test.

He is facing a veteran in Luis Arias who has only been Stopped once before.

However, Arias has become a fighter used to give prospects Rounds and has lost two in a row against unbeaten opponents, but taking both to the cards.

His best days are behind him and Amari Jones has shown a bit more spite than most as he has moved up the Rankings and he can become the second fighter to force a Stoppage against Luis Arias after Erickson Lubin managed that in 2023.

We should also see Bektemir Melikuziev continue his winning run as he takes a step back in level of opponent in the wide open Super Middleweight Division.

Recent outings have not been the most impressive, but Bully is facing an opponent who has been out of the ring for fifteen months and who had been Stopped very early in back to back fights before a blowout in his most recent outing.

Sena Agbeko has not been able to handle the early power and that may be the case again in this bout.

One of the intriguing undercard bouts features a returning Frank Martin who is back out just two months after ending a year long layoff.

He is now operating at the Light-Welterweight level, but he looks a very short favourite against Nahir Albright.

The underdog was only beaten by Keyshawn Davis in a Majority Decision in the Lightweight Division, but upset his brother Kelvin Davis last June. That victory was marred by a backstage scrap with the other Davis brothers, but Nahir Albright has shown he is a tough out and his style could make things very tough for The Ghost.

On paper the Gary Antuanne Russell World Title defence against Andy Hiraoka looks like an appetising support for the main event.

Combined they have suffered just one defeat between them, while thirty-seven of the forty-two combined wins have been in Stoppages.

It most definitely feels like the Champion has been in with the higher calibre of opponent, while there has to be some serious doubts about Andy Hiraoka's decision to arrive in the United States just a couple of days before the fight is due to take place.

At one point it sounded like he would not be given a Visa to travel, but the late arrival is not going to be ideal in what could develop into a really good fight.

You would not describe Gary Antuanne Russell as the most active fighter out there, but he may just outlast the Challenger and he can force the Stoppage after an entertaining battle.

Another who may earn a Stoppage in defence of his World Title is Richardson Hitchins who will be defending the IBF Light-Welterweight Title for the second time.

His Promotional team have asked Hitchins to move through the gears and impress fans by putting his shots together and the Stoppage of George Kambosos Jr in his first defence has given the Champion a real boost.

There is a dangerous opponent in front of him as Oscar Duarte Jurado is unbeaten in four fights since losing to Ryan Garcia to earn this shot.

The Mexican earned a couple of wins in 2025 to earn this opportunity, but it does feel like this is a step up compared with recent opponents and the toughest fight since he was beaten by Ryan Garcia.

In the main Richardson Hitchins has been happy to rack up the points and use the cards to remain unbeaten, but the performance against Kambosos Jr showed a bit more.

An open Division is going to be calling for Unifications soon and Hitchins will want to remind the fans of his own quality by matching the Stoppage earned by Ryan Garcia against this opponent.

Leigh Wood vs Josh Warrington II

There is no love lost between these fighters, but there is also a healthy respect having shared the ring once before.

October 2023 was the first time Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington faced off and it was not the first time that Wood had seemingly been losing a fight before turning it around by displaying his huge punching power.

Josh Warrington has seemingly been haunted by the defeat and felt the referee had let him down by Stopping things right at the end of Round Seven instead of allowing him to have that minute between Rounds.

In fairness Warrington looked done in the fight having dominated, but then caught by some huge shots from the gloves of Leigh Wood.

He is the underdog in this fight back in Nottingham, although not at the City Ground as Leigh Wood would have liked, and both fighters know that this could be a career-ender for the loser.

The defeat to Wood was the second of a three fight losing run for Josh Warrington, which culminated in a defeat on the cards by Anthony Cacace- that took place in September 2024 and Warrington left his gear in the ring to suggest he was calling time on his career before surprisingly returning in 2025 and shaking off the ring rust in a Ten Round Decision win.

Leigh Wood has only had one fight since the win over Warrington and that was also a defeat to Antony Cacace, although this time it was in a Ninth Round Stoppage in May last year.

There is no doubt that both have moved past their primes, but that should mean we are in for another barnstormer with some of the punch resistance gone and the two at a similar stage in their careers.

Plenty of leather was thrown in the original bout and that ended in the Seventh Round.

The pattern is likely to be the same when Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington meet again and it would be a surprise if this one goes the distance.

It will either be Josh Warrington wearing out Leigh Wood or the latter finding another combination of big punches, but the wear and tear on both fighters at 35 and 37 years old respectively should be shown up in the ring on Saturday.

Ultimately the fans should be getting their money's worth when these two face off with neither looking like they will settle for taking a backwards step.

The chief support sees the British Light Middleweight Title on the line.

Ishmael Davis won the that Title and the Commonwealth Light Middleweight Title in a close victory over Sam Gilley in November and he has won two fights in a row having suffered three straight defeats.

Those came in contests when Davis was willing to step in on short notice, but he impressed enough to be given more opportunities and he is the favourite.

However, Bilal Fawaz has to be respected having beaten a highly touted prospect in Junaid Boston- he had to fight the youngster twice after a controversial Draw the first time around, but Fawaz deserved the Decision in the rematch and he has been signed by Matchroom, which underlines the potential they still see in a 37 year old who has been held back in his career as his immigration status has been fought out in the courts.

In another life Fawaz would have competed for Great Britain in the Olympic Games and there is some momentum in his career right now and an opportunity you feel he can grasp.

This is a tough step up and Ishmael Davis has overcome plenty of disadvantages in his own life, while also operating against a higher level of opponent.

Beating Troy Williamson is impressive and Davis certainly gave Josh Kelly and Caoimhin Agyarko real tests, which also look more impressive especially after Kelly has moved on to become a World Champion.

Both are tough, grizzled and with everything to gain and so it does feel like the Judges will be needed.

Bilal Fawaz is hugely motivated, but Ishmael Davis has shown he can do enough to win fights against this kind of level of opponent and it makes for fascinating viewing.

The undercard is littered with a number of one-sided women fights with the A side names all expected to come out on top.

There is still a real lack of depth in the women's side of the sport, which means Sandy Ryan is able to fight for a World Title just one fight removed from back to back defeats. She should be able to get a Belt back around her waist and both Molly McCann and Tiah Mai Ayton are also expected to continue their development towards the top of the Rankings with wins.

One fighter who is expected to impress is Dave Allen who returns and is expected to make short work of Karim Berredjem.

The latter is experienced and only been Stopped in three of his ten defeats, but those have come in the Fourth, Third and First Round and Allen should be able to come in and just get back to winning ways pretty quickly.

MY PICKS: Ryan Garcia to Win by Decision/Technical Decision @ 3.50 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Amari Jones to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 1.61 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Bektemir Melikuziev to Win Between 1-5 @ 1.83 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Gary Antuanne Russell to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 2.75 Bet Fred (2 Units)

Richardson Hitchens to Win Between 7-12 @ 10.50 William Hill (1 Unit)

Leigh Wood-Josh Warrington Fight to Go Distance- No @ 2.10 Bet Fred (2 Units)

David Allen to Win Between 1-3 @ 2.00 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Boxing 2026: 2-7, - 6.66 Units (16 Units Staked, - 41.63% Yield)

European Tour 1- Poland Darts Open Day 2 Picks 2026 (Saturday 21st February)

The first European Tour event of the 2026 began with an excited crowd on Friday as the First Round in Poland was completed, but the atmosphere should be even better on Saturday when some of the very best players on the Tour join the party.

Some quality matches have been set out ahead of the final day and the opening selections returned a slight profit.

Backing that up is the key across the two sessions set for Saturday with eight Second Round matches in the best of eleven format to be completed in both.

Nathan Aspinall to win & most 180s v Darryl Pilgrim: The early performances at the Players Championship have been solid enough for Nathan Aspinall, but he would have wanted at least one deeper run this past week.

He remains one of the big maximum hitters on the Tour and Nathan Aspinall is looking to put together a year that does earn him a return to the Premier League.

The likelihood is that the scoring power is going to be key for Aspinall against Darryl Pilgrim who upset Dave Chisnall, as well as one of the selections made on these pages on Friday.

However, that was not exactly a strong performance from Pilgrim and he is going to have to find a higher level, while also unlikely to be afforded as many chances as Chisnall allowed him to have in the First Round.

You have to expect Nathan Aspinall to have the majority of maximums in the match and that should set him up for a place in the Third Round.

Wessel Nijman v Gary Anderson: It has been made clear over the first seven weeks of the 2026 season that Gary Anderson is one of the favoured players, but he may struggle to contain Wessel Nijman.

Big hitting gives Anderson a chance to win any match he plays, but a couple of Third Round losses at the opening two Players Championship tournaments have continued an inconsistent start to the season.

He is well rested having skipped the two Players Championship tournaments played earlier this week, but that may leave Gary Anderson a little short against an extremely confident player.

Wessel Nijman was far from at his best in the First Round win here in Poland, but he has been putting together plenty of wins on the floor.

The numbers are impressive and it is Nijman who can be backed just ahead of Connor Scutt and Daryl Gurney as the strongest looking underdog to be able to make it through to the next day.

Jonny Clayton to win & over 2.5 180s v Adam Gawlas: The underdog came through the First Round with a solid win, but this is a step up in level if Jonny Clayton gets near to the form he has been producing in the Premier League.

The Night 3 Winner has admitted how much he enjoys playing in that Premier League tournament, but he is also keen to impress on the European Tour.

Jonny Clayton is finishing well enough and has been producing some very high scoring and that may give him the edge in this one.

The World Number 5 has not played Adam Gawlas in a few years, but he will have noted the maximum hitting that the latter produced on Friday. Jonny Clayton will have to match that in any winning effort, but he has been pounding the treble 20 bed with real regularity and can hit at least three on his way through to the Third Round.

Joe Cullen v Michael Smith: The withdrawal of Gerwyn Price allowed Michael Smith to not only travel to Krakow, but to take the Welshman's place in the Second Round.

Bully Boy lost a Qualifier to Micky Mansell that really upset him earlier this month, but he has earned six wins this week that has earned Smith places in European Tour 3 and 4 events to be played.

Those will have given him confidence, but Michael Smith has to be aware that Joe Cullen looks to be rounding into real form after some underwhelming months on the Tour.

A strong First Round win has to have given Cullen a boost, while he has also gotten the better of Michael Smith in a Players Championship meeting.

Both played well on that day, but the money has been coming in on Joe Cullen who has now become the favourite, which looks about right.

Luke Humphries to win & over 2.5 180s v Krzysztof Ratajski: The fans are going to be loud and boisterous for this Second Round match as the home favourite takes on the World Number 2.

However, Krzysztof Ratajski is going to need Luke Humphries to have an off day if he is going to earn the upset.

The Polish Number 1 has lost the last seven matches against Luke Humphries and has struggled to match the scoring power that the latter can produce. That has led to some one-sided wins for Humphries, including two last year on the Tour, and the challenge is all the greater for Ratajski when you consider how well Luke Humphries has been playing of late.

His results have not reflected that in the Premier League, but only three dates have been played, while Luke Humphries won a Players Championship earlier this week.

The scoring has been there and Luke Humphries should have too much for Krzysztof Ratajski even if the home crowd can inspire the underdog to push this one closer than some of the recent matches against the World Number 2 have played out.

MY PICKS: Nathan Aspinall to Win & Most 180s @ 1.95 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Wessel Nijman @ 2.10 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Jonny Clayton to Win & Over 2.5 180s @ 2.05 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Joe Cullen @ 1.80 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Luke Humphries to Win & Over 2.5 180s @ 1.91 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Poland Open: 3-2, + 0.77 Units (5 Units Staked, + 15.40% Yield)