| Wayne Warren | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Nickname | "Yank" [1] |
| Born | 12 June 1962 Cardiff, Wales |
| Home town | Tynewydd, Wales |
| Darts information | |
| Playing darts since | 1985 |
| Darts | 17.5g Red Dragon Signature |
| Laterality | Right Handed |
| Walk-on music | "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor |
| Organisation (see split in darts) | |
| BDO | 2003–2020 |
| WDF | 2003–2022 |
| WDF major events – best performances | |
| World Ch'ship | Winner (1): 2020 |
| World Masters | Quarter Finals: 2018 |
| World Trophy | Quarter Finals: 2015 |
| Finder Masters | Quarter Finals: 2018 |
| PDC premier events – best performances | |
| Grand Slam | Group Stage: 2019, 2020 |
| WSDT major events – best performances | |
| World Ch'ship | Last 16: 2022 |
| Other tournament wins | |
| Tournament | Years |
| Antwerp Open BDO Gold Cup BDO International Open Romanian Classic Slovak Masters WDF Europe Cup Team | 2019 2014 2012 2020 2020 2014 |
| Other achievements | |
| 2014 Glamorgan Open | |
Wayne Warren (born 12 June 1962) is a Welsh former professional darts player who competed in World Darts Federation (WDF). He was the last BDO World Darts Champion. He is the oldest player to become world champion. [2]
Warren qualified for the 2005 BDO World Darts Championship, where he was the only Welshman in the field. He lost 3–0 in the first round to third seed Mervyn King. Warren has come close to qualifying for Lakeside on two occasions, falling two games short of qualifying for the 2008 World Championship in a loss to Mike Veitch who eventually qualified, and then falling at the same hurdle again in the qualifiers for the 2009 World Championship, losing to Robbie Green. Warren fell two games short once more of qualifying for the 2010 World Championship, losing to Irishman Martin McCloskey who eventually qualified.
Warren's best TV performance came in the 2015 BDO World Trophy, where he reached the quarter-finals, beating Madars Razma 6–4 and 2015 World Champion Scott Mitchell with ease 7–2. He fell at the Last-8 stage, losing a close game with Jeff Smith 8–7. [3]
Warren also qualified for the 2013 World Championship, but lost in the first round to Alan Norris.
In 2014, Warren won the BDO Gold Cup, beating Pip Blackwell in the final three sets to nil. [4]
Warren reached the quarter-final of the 2018 World Championship, beating Wesley Harms 3–1 in an impressive showing in the 1st round; in the 2nd round, after a tough start, he defeated Willem Mandigers 4–2 to set up a quarter-final match against Mark McGeeney. Warren led McGeeney 4–3 in sets and led the eighth by a break of throw, but McGeeney took the set to a deciding leg, in which Warren hit a double-one attempting to hit a single 20 that would have given him one match dart. McGeeney won the set and ultimately the match 5–4. [5] [6]
At the 2020 World Championship, Warren improved on his best performance by reaching the final, and beat fellow Welshman Jim Williams 7–4 to win the BDO world title. [7] At 57, Warren was the oldest winner of either version of the world championship. [8] His prize winning fee of £23,000 was the lowest awarded to a world champion since 1989, as a result of the BDO's financial difficulties which led to it going into liquidation later in the year. Warren is therefore the last player to win the BDO version of the world championship, and became the World Darts Federation's number one ranked player as a result of his victory. [8]
Fellow players and commentators have commented on Warren's smooth and relaxing throwing style. [9]
Warren is an active player on the darts exhibition circuit. [10]
Away from darts, Warren works as a roofer and lives in Tynewydd, Rhondda Cynon Taf. [1] He is sponsored by Red Dragon Darts. [11]
In 2001, Warren was involved in an incident in which he was splashed with boiling chip fat – suffering 20% upper body burns which gave him heavy scarring. [12]
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(February 2023) |
| This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(February 2023) |
| Legend |
|---|
| World Championship (1–0) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score [N 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2020 | World Darts Championship |  Jim Williams | 7–4 (s) |
| Tournament | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WDF World Championship | NYF | 3R | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||||
| BDO World Championship | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | QF | 2R | W | Not held | ||||||||||||
| BDO World Trophy | Not held | DNQ | QF | DNQ | 1R | 2R | NH | ||||||||||||||
| Winmau World Masters | 1R | DNP | 1R | DNP | 2R | DNP | 1R | 3R | 4R | 2R | 4R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | DNP | NH | |||
| Finder Darts Masters | DNP | NH | DNP | QF | NH | ||||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam of Darts | NYF | DNQ | RR | RR | |||||||||||||||||
| Performance Table Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DNP | Did not play at the event | DNQ | Did not qualify for the event | NYF | Not yet founded | #R | lost in the early rounds of the tournament (WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin) |
| QF | lost in the quarter-finals | SF | lost in the semi-finals | F | lost in the final | W | won the tournament |
Edward Hankey is an English former professional darts player. Nicknamed "The Count", he won the BDO World Darts Championship in 2000 and 2009 and was runner-up in 2001.
Martin Adams is an English professional darts player who plays in World Darts Federation (WDF) events. Nicknamed "Wolfie", he is a three-time BDO World Champion and three-time World Masters champion. He represents Cambridgeshire at county darts level and was the captain of England from 1993 to 2013, the longest any player has held that role. From his debut in 1994, Adams made a record 25 consecutive World Championship appearances, before failing to qualify for the first time in 2019. Adams was diagnosed with prostate cancer in April 2016, but by the end of the year he was given the all-clear. As well as playing, he also acted as a regular pundit and commentator for televised coverage of BDO events.
Anthony Brown was an English professional darts player. He came close to winning the world championship on a number of occasions, reaching the World Professional Darts Championships semi-finals four times, losing twice to Eric Bristow and twice to John Lowe.
Kevin McDine is an English professional darts player currently residing in Wallsend.
Stephen Bunting is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked world number five. He is a former BDO World Champion, having won the 2014 World Championship.
Krzysztof Ratajski is a Polish professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. His biggest achievement to date was winning the 2017 World Masters. Ratajski has won 10 ranking titles on the PDC Pro Tour and has represented Poland at the PDC World Cup of Darts on numerous occasions. He is the most successful darts player to come from Poland. Together with Krzysztof Kciuk, he is the world record holder in pairs match average.
Ronnie Baxter is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He used the nickname "The Rocket" for his matches. Baxter was known for his fast robotic throwing action. He currently resides in his hometown Blackpool. Baxter is widely regarded as one of the best players never to have won a major TV title. He is still active on the exhibition circuit.
Glen Durrant, nicknamed "Duzza", is an English former professional darts player who played in British Darts Organisation (BDO) and Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Mark McGeeney is an English professional darts player from Coventry, Warwickshire. He currently plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Nick Kenny is a Welsh professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a multi-medallist in both the WDF World Cup and the WDF Europe Cup and won 2 titles on the PDC Development Tour. He also reached the quarter-finals at the 2022 World Masters and the semi finals at the 2017 BDO World Trophy. He has competed in six World Championships, reaching the last 32 on four occasions.
Cameron Menzies is a Scottish darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He reached the semi-finals at the 2017 World Masters and the 2022 WDF Lakeside World Championship. Menzies also won his maiden PDC title in 2024 and reached the quarter-finals at the 2024 Grand Slam of Darts.
Harry Ward is an English professional darts player who last played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
The 2018 Lakeside World Professional Darts Championship was the 41st World Championship organised by the British Darts Organisation, and the 33rd staging at the Lakeside Country Club at Frimley Green.
The 2017 Winmau World Masters was a major tournament on the BDO/WDF calendar for 2017. It took place from 25 to 27 September at the Bridlington Spa Hall, which hosted the stage element of the event for the first time since 2009.
Chris Landman is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won a PDC Challenge Tour in 2023 and was the runner-up at the 2023 WDF Lakeside World Championship. He was also the runner-up at a Players Championship event in 2023.
Michael Unterbuchner is a German professional darts player who currently plays in World Darts Federation (WDF) events. He reached the semi-finals of the BDO World Darts Championship on two of his three appearances. In 2021–2022 he was the holder of the PDC Tour Card and played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
The 2018 Winmau World Masters was a major tournament on the BDO/WDF calendar for 2018. It took place from 3–7 October at the Bridlington Spa Hall, which hosted the stage element of the event for the second time since 2009.
Adam Smith-Neale is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won a Challenge Tour in 2021 and was the 2018 BDO World Masters champion.
Mark Jay Layton is a Welsh professional darts player who plays in World Darts Federation events.
Willem Mandigers is a Dutch professional darts player who competes in World Darts Federation events.
