2026 World Darts Grand Prix first round predictions and previews

The opening round of the World Grand Prix can create some intense drama with a short format, and in this case, some very even matchups.

2026 World Darts Grand Prix First round predictions and previews

Here are my predictions for the first round.

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(8) Danny Noppert vs. Niko Springer

Winner: Niko Springer, 2-1

After making four semifinal major runs in 2025, we expected a little more from Noppert this year, but the form hasn’t consistently been there.

He had a pair of quarterfinal major runs early in the year (Masters and UK Open), but has been on a dry spell since, losing in the first round at both the World Matchplay and World Series of Darts Finals.

Springer himself hasn’t had the best results at majors, so something will have to give for one of these players to get through to the next round.

On paper, Noppert is the stronger player, but Springer seems to be where Wessel Nijman was a year or so ago, where you can feel he’s on the brink of a breakout performance that can really insert him into the conversation as a regular threat at events.

Springer and Noppert are both similar in 2026 in regards to their checkout %, so the winner here may be determined more so on who is a better scorer, in the Grand Prix’s double-in double-out format.

(13) Ross Smith vs. Cameron Menzies

Winner: Ross Smith, 2-1

Smith is just about a week removed from his WSoD Finals title, but he’ll have to face a strong unseeded player who just won a title of his own this week on the Pro Tour.

I still think Smith will be the favorite here, as his consistency over the past few months is something being talked about more, as he goes on more deep runs.

Menzies actually faced Smith in the second round of the World Matchplay this summer, but unfortunately withdrew mid-match because of a medical issue.

He’ll want a chance at redemption this time around, but that will be tough with Smith playing some incredibly efficient darts at the moment.

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(16) Nathan Aspinall vs. Kevin Doets

Winner: Nathan Aspinall, 2-1

Doets has drawn some tough opponents in recent majors, and this is another.

The same can be said for Aspinall in this case, with Doets playing well in 2026.

Aspinall nearly pulled off the upset against Littler at the WSoD Finals, but lost in a last-leg decider. The winner of this match will likely have to play Littler in the second round, so that may be on their mind already.

Doets’ form has dipped a bit in the past few months, while Aspinall has been great, so Aspinall will likely get through here to try and beat Littler again at a major event.

Expect a tight contest though, as both players will try and capitalize on any opportunities given to them by their opponent.

(5) Jonny Clayton vs. Krzysztof Ratajski

Winner: Jonny Clayton, 2-1

Ratajski’s attitude and ceiling as a player make him seem like someone who can pull off an upset, but it’s a tough call with a lack of results in the past couple of months.

Ratajski has managed to make it out of the first round the last four times he played in the WGP, beating players like Nathan Aspinall, James Wade and Martin Schindler.

Clayton has had some deeper campaigns at the event the last two years, making the semi-final last year and the quarter-finals the year before.

I expect a tough fight from Ratajski, but it’s hard to go against Clayton, who is typically pretty reliable.

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(4) Gerwyn Price vs. Sebastian Bialecki

Winner: Gerwyn Price, 2-0

This is the first time Bialecki will be playing at the World Grand Prix.

He’ll have to face an in-form Price who is going to be difficult to keep pace with.

I don’t quite think Bialecki is at the same point in his progression as a player like Springer, especially with a tough opponent ahead of him, so Price will enter this game as a strong favorite, as he’ll even have some wiggle room to have a bit of an off day.

(9) Michael van Gerwen vs. Ryan Joyce

Winner: Michael van Gerwen, 2-1

It was just two years ago that Joyce was a semifinalist at this event, so the pressure will be on him to try and defend some of that money.

He’s set to drop a few spots down the rankings if he does lose early on, but he’s played well enough on the Pro Tour to keep qualifying for the harder majors.

MVG is a wildcard these days at events, but it would be hard to see him drop a winnable match like this, after a disappointing exit at the WSoD Finals, and two first-round exits at the WGP the last two years.

(1) Luke Littler vs. Luke Woodhouse

Winner: Luke Littler, 2-0

Woodhouse isn’t an easy draw for Littler, but it’s still a match Littler should feel confident in.

He’ll have a chip on his shoulder after his winning streak at majors ended in the Netherlands last weekend, and the WGP is one of the many titles he will attempt to defend.

I think Woodhouse has taken massive strides in 2026, but isn’t quite there to be able to threaten Littler too much in this match.

(12) Wessel Nijman vs. Rob Cross

Winner: Wessel Nijman, 2-1

Cross and Nijman will face off in the first round for a second straight year.

Cross won that match, but the scenario is entirely flipped this time around, as Nijman is a seed and Cross is unseeded.

Nijman enters this event as one of the favorites, and although he has a rather tough first-round match, I think he’s built to win a match like this in the double-in double-out format.

(15) Chris Dobey vs. Jermaine Wattimena

Winner: Jermaine Wattimena, 2-1

Dobey hasn’t been playing as well as he’d hope to be playing, with little success in the second half of the year, especially at majors.

Wattimena has shown more promise in recent months, as he won a PC title a few weeks ago, and recently had a semifinal and quarterfinal run on the Pro Tour as well.

He’ll hope to carry that momentum into Leicester, as he’s one of the unseeded players who has a strong chance at advancing to the next round.

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(14) Ryan Searle vs. William O’Connor

Winner: William O’Connor, 2-1

This is another of the familiar recent matchups we saw at the World Matchplay.

Searle won that battle, but I still think O’Connor has a shot to come through here.

Searle is the much more experienced player, which means O’Connor will have to play well out of the gates and not dig himself into too big a hole, but it’s only time for him to get a big-stage win like this.

(7) Josh Rock vs. Niels Zonneveld

Winner: Josh Rock, 2-0

Zonneveld really should have had a shot at playing Rock in Blackpool, but he couldn’t quite get over the line against Stephen Bunting to advance and play Rock.

He probably wishes he’d got that shot, because Rock wasn’t playing nearly as well as he did last weekend.

I think Rock comes in as one of the strong favorites to get the job done quickly.

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(6) James Wade vs. Joe Cullen

Winner: James Wade, 2-0

Wade and Cullen squared off a couple of times at majors in 2025, at the World Matchplay and the World Grand Prix.

Wade dominated the Matchplay game, but Cullen won 2-0 in the GP match.

Wade has been the far better player this year, so it’s hard to see him lose to Cullen.

(10) Gary Anderson vs. Damon Heta

Winner: Damon Heta, 2-1

It’s been a few weeks since we saw Gary Anderson play, but the week before that he was a runner-up on the Euro Tour.

It’s tough to tell if that type of form will be present this week, but one thing is for sure, which is that Heta will be in this match, after some encouraging recent results he’s had.

Heta is slowly inching back to how we expected him to play a couple of years ago, so because of that, I like his chances against an unpredictable Anderson, especially in the opening round’s short format.

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(3) Gian van Veen vs. Dirk van Duijvenbode

Winner: Gian van Veen, 2-1

GVV can’t seem to catch a break. He’s stated himself that he doesn’t feel like the world #3 since he has no titles this year to back it up.

He lost in yet another final on the Pro Tour this past week, but has a chance to use the Grand Prix as a boost for the rest of the year.

We know GVV at his peak is one of the best double hitters in the PDC, so look to see how he opens matches, because that will be the best indicator of whether or not he will have control of the wheel in a match.

(2) Luke Humphries vs. Dave Chisnall

Winner: Luke Humphries, 2-0

Chisnall is probably just happy to bet at the GP, given his qualifying odds were looking slim for both the Matchplay and GP just a few months ago.

He might just have to accept getting R1 money, because a determined world #2 is in his way.

Humphries has had very early exits at the last two majors (Matchplay and WSoD Finals) and it would be shocking to see him lose yet another very winnable game.

(11) Stephen Bunting vs. Andrew Gilding

Winner: Stephen Bunting, 2-1

I’ve been high on Bunting this year despite some of his struggles, and still believe his A-game will come out at one of these events.

Not to say his quarter of the bracket is easy, but there are a lot of players he can beat, so that has to motivate him in some way to try and rally after not finding many positive results at big money ranked events this year.

With players like Ross Smith and Wessel Nijman having great years, Bunting’s odds of making the PL lineup are shrinking, so he has to act now before it’s too late.

2026 World Darts Grand Prix first round predictions and previews