Pipe the man in form

Justin Pipe is the form man on the PDC circuit but could he cause a massive shock and be crowned the new PDC Darts World Champion at the Alexandra Palace, or will it be a traditional name on the trophy?

The 39-year-old only won his maiden professional title at the start of October – where he notably defeated 15-time World Champion Phil Taylor in the final in Dublin – but followed that up with a further two tournament victories in the space of one month. Those looking at the PDC Darts odds online will have been impressed.

Pipe recorded impressive victories over former World Champions Steve Beaton and Mark Webster on his way to winning the Players Championship in Crawley last time out. In the final it was a real battle of contrasting styles as the slow Pipe took on Dutch machine gun Vincent van der Voort.

“I'm really enjoying myself at the moment and I'm climbing up the rankings, and this is another massive confidence boost for me,” said the Taunton flinger.

Pipe has recorded some memorable wins in 2011 over some of the biggest stars in world darts and he is definitely going to be a dangerous opponent in the draw for the PDC Darts World Championship.

His very long and drawn-out throwing style can put off some opponents, as they are forced to wait a long time to throw and that can leave them dwelling over previous missed opportunities. That leads to frustration which can be evident in their next throw.

Whether Pipe can manage to pull off a serious title threat at the Alexandra Palace remains to be seen as there are a number of stars who on their day can register big three-dart averages on the biggest stage.

On the big TV stage is where Pipe is still in his infancy, but if he can replicate his on-the-floor performances in front of a world championship audience then he can go a long way – but his slow pace could annoy some of the more critical darts fans.