Ross Smith has singled out Luke Littler, Luke Humphries and Phil Taylor as exceptions to the relentless difficulty of winning major darts titles, admitting that his own two biggest triumphs, separated by four years, demonstrate just how hard it is to consistently succeed at the highest level.

The former European champion was speaking after surviving a nervy opening-night encounter at the 2026 European Darts Championship in Dortmund, where he missed five match darts before eventually defeating Karel Sedlacek 6-4. Returning to the Westfalenhalle as the tournament's number one seed, Smith was pushed all the way by the Czech and needed his opponent to miss five darts to force a deciding leg before finally securing victory on double two.

Smith's return to Dortmund comes just over a month after he defeated Gerwyn Price to win the World Series of Darts Finals, ending a four-year wait for his second major title following his breakthrough European Championship success in 2022. Asked during his post-match press conference, attended by DartsNews.com, whether that latest triumph had changed his expectations, the Englishman was quick to stress the difficulty of repeating such achievements.

"No, I wouldn't say my expectations change. I'm pretty down to earth. I'm realistic as well. If I play well, I know I can win. I know I can win anything. But at the end of the day, you're still playing the best players in the world. And if you don't turn up, you're going to get done," Smith explained.

"I've won two majors, but there's a four-year gap in that. So realistically, it just shows how hard it is, unless you're a bit of a freak, maybe like Mr Littler and Mr Humphries and Mr Taylor. And probably more."

Smith survives dramatic Dortmund scare as number one seed

The 37-year-old's difficulties began immediately against Sedlacek, with four missed darts at double allowing the Czech to claim the opening leg. Smith recovered and moved 2-1 ahead with a 12-dart break, but Sedlacek responded with an 11-darter and an 81 checkout to level the contest.

Neither player could establish control as breaks of throw continued to dominate. Smith was visibly frustrated after missing double 16 to move 4-2 ahead, allowing Sedlacek to draw level again, before the Czech punished another error to make it 4-4.

The Englishman eventually edged 5-4 ahead after Sedlacek missed double 20 for a 117 checkout, but closing out the match proved considerably more difficult than establishing the lead. Smith missed twice at double 20, twice at double 10 and once at double five, leaving his opponent with an opportunity to force a deciding leg.

Sedlacek squandered five darts of his own, however, and Smith finally brought the evening to an end on double two. "Towards the end? The start, if I'm honest with you!" Smith laughed when asked about his apparent nerves. "Sometimes it happens. I've played on the Euro Tour and I've even played on the floor events and the Players Championships, and you have days sometimes where you just go into a little bit of a panic or you can be a bit nervy. At the end of the day, we're all human."

Although he acknowledged that the longer format suits him better, Smith dismissed suggestions that the first round's best-of-11-leg format had contributed to his struggles. He has spent the season competing in the same format across the European Tour and Players Championship circuit, and believes dealing with those situations is part of professional darts.

His return to Dortmund nevertheless brought mixed emotions. Smith famously lifted the European Championship trophy at the same venue in 2022, but had struggled to make an impression on subsequent visits.

"It feels like quite a long time ago now. And it is, to be fair. It's four years, isn't it?" he reflected. "But it's a strange one. Mixed emotions, because since then I haven't really done anything here. I think I've won one game. Well, two games now!"

Smith arrived at this year's tournament in a considerably stronger position than on many of those previous occasions. Two European Tour titles and two further final appearances helped him finish top of the European Tour Order of Merit across the 15-event campaign, earning him the number one seeding in Dortmund.

For a player whose career has included lengthy periods away from the professional circuit and serious doubts about his future in the sport, that achievement carries particular significance.

"I feel like I've had two careers"

Long before his European Championship breakthrough, Smith had been regarded as one of England's promising young players, emerging through county darts and the BDO system before making the transition to the PDC.

But his early progress did not develop into an uninterrupted rise towards the top. He stepped away from professional darts, worked as a lorry driver and faced the financial and family responsibilities that came with becoming a father.

"I feel like I've had two careers, probably," Smith admitted. "I had the first career from being a youth player of 14 years old, playing in the BDO system, in county and things like that, right the way through to then playing in the PDC."

"Then obviously I had that break and had my little lad and had to get a mortgage and grow up quite a lot. So, yeah, and then it was like, you know, knuckled down."

Looking back, Smith believes his development might have been different had he received better guidance during those early years. "It's a shame really, because I wish I had that guidance and maybe a bit of, I don't know, just that guidance of knuckling down at a younger age maybe. But that's life."

Even after returning to professional darts, there were moments when he considered walking away again and resuming his former career behind the wheel. Now, with two major titles, a place among the world's leading players and further opportunities on the biggest stages, Smith's journey has taken him considerably further than he once imagined.

"I'm privileged and I love it. I love playing this game and I love to be here and to be in front of these crowds. I wouldn't have thought I'd be here in a million years. So it's an absolute pleasure and I'm grateful to be here."

That perspective has remained intact despite the added recognition that comes with being the European Championship's top seed. Smith was full of praise for Sedlacek, who claimed the final qualification place for the tournament, and insisted that rankings offer little protection against the strength of the opposition.

"Karel's a fantastic player and I don't think the seedings in a tournament like this obviously, they don't reflect on the players," he said. "There are fantastic players wherever you play. It doesn't matter if you're number one seed, number 32 seed or whatever."

Asked whether his new status had changed how he conducted himself on the practice floor, Smith joked that he had arrived in Dortmund behaving like Conor McGregor, demanding special treatment and enjoying the privileges of being number one.

"I think if I did walk in like that, I'd be slapped down pretty quickly!" he laughed.

Smith in action

Consistency becomes the next challenge for two-time major winner

For all the humour surrounding his seeding, Smith takes considerable satisfaction from what it represents. Winning two major titles has already established his credentials, but producing results throughout an entire European Tour season has demonstrated something different.

"It's fantastic to walk in as number one seed over the 15 tournaments. It's something I'm really proud of, to be fair," he said. "It's a big achievement for myself and just shows that I've been saying for years to Phil and everyone else, consistency is a massive thing."

"It's all right doing it one tournament, but doing it time and time again is where the great players, that's the separation. And to do it over 15 tournaments being number one, obviously I'm doing something right."

His success has also brought demands that would have been difficult to imagine during the period when he was working outside the professional game. With an increasingly busy schedule, greater expectations and the pressures of competing against the world's best, Smith admitted that his approach to darts has necessarily become more professional.

"If I don't treat it like a job and it's a jolly-up, then I'm going to get punished. So I have to treat it like a job. That's the first and foremost thing that needs to be done," he explained.

"But at the same time, you need to enjoy yourself and be grateful for where you are and appreciate things. How many people get to go up on stage in front of whether it's 2,000, 5,000, 10,000, 20,000 people? It's not normal. That's not a normal job, especially for me."

Smith also credited the people working behind the scenes at the PDC and recalled advice from his uncle to embrace every opportunity to perform in front of a major crowd, something he continues to appreciate despite his growing success.

His next appearance in Dortmund will come against Damon Heta in Saturday's second round, after the Australian recovered from 5-3 down to defeat James Wade 6-5 on Thursday evening.

The best-of-19-leg format will offer Smith the longer contest he prefers, although Heta's opening-night comeback provides its own warning about the dangers of leaving an opponent opportunities. Four years after his first major triumph in Dortmund, Smith has another chance to build on his European Tour dominance and move closer to a second European Championship crown.