VAN GERWEN WARNED OVER HUGE RANKINGS SLIDE

MICHAEL VAN GERWEN has been warned he faces a huge slide down the PDC rankings.

‘Mighty Mike’ is defending prize money earned from reaching the finals of the World Masters, World Matchplay and World Championship two years ago.

However, MVG struggled for consistency last season, ending the year without a ranking major title and managing only a European Championship semi-final as his best result.

The three-time world champion is no longer the Netherlands’ No.1 for the first time in 13 years, having been overtaken by World No.3 Gian van Veen.

Former pro Matt Edgar believes Van Gerwen must raise his level to avoid sliding towards the lower end of the top 16 on the Order of Merit.

He told the Love the Darts podcast: “There’s a lot on the horizon for him. He’s defending the final from the World Championship as part of this year’s cycle of defending prize money.

“There’s an awful lot of his prize money for grabs where if it doesn’t go well, he could see himself drop to the bottom of the top 16.

“Now, he’s world number four. This conversation, I didn’t start it with, is he going to take any of the top three places back?

“My concern is how far down down the rankings does he go right now?”

Paul Nicholson reckons that Vincent van der Voort, a close friend of Van Gerwen, will play a key role in helping the 47-time major winner return to his very best.

He added: “When Vincent was in the venue, and he hadn’t been previously, Michael turned into a different animal.

“I said to Vincent, to his face — from about five metres away, because he’s quite a scary individual sometimes — ‘You’re not going anywhere, Vincent, because when you’re here, he performs.’

“I think he is instrumental to the darting future of Michael. I think he always has been, because you need allies, even when you’re on the stage on your own.

“He’s the one who says to Michael, right?

“‘Get up then. Go and show us what you can do. People doubt you.’ That’s what he’s saying to Michael.

“‘People don’t think you’re going to win this game. Show them. Straight shooting.’

“That’s exactly what Michael needs. He doesn’t need people around him to say that everything’s okay because everything isn’t.

“He’s going to go down the rankings if he doesn’t do something about it.

“And that has to come from someone you trust. And Michael trusts Vincent 100%.

“More than anyone in the world.”

World No. 4 Van Gerwen has shown flashes of brilliance in 2025 after beating Luke Littler 11–7 to win the World Series Finals.

But the 36-year-old failed to qualify for Premier League Finals Night for the first time since 2020.

Van Gerwen also went a full season without winning a ProTour title for the first time since 2011 and did not qualify for the Players Championship Finals.

Image by Taylor Lanning.