A video of Leighton Bennett completely missing the dart board has emerged soon after the Darts Regulation Authority (DRA) announced he is under investigation on suspicion of match fixing. The 18-year-old is suspended by the DRA along with Billy Warriner.
He is currently banned from playing in any DRA events after the International Betting Integrity Association reported a number of suspicious betting patterns detected in his matches between September 6 and September 9 2023. One of the matches concerned is his clash against Ryan Harrington in a 2023 Modus Super Series event.
After the announcement was made, a video of a leg between the pair saw Bennett wildly miss some doubles and, in one instance, the board entirely.
While he was trailing Harrington 2-1 on legs, Bennett had the opportunity to finish off a difficult 164. He started perfectly, finding the triple 20 and then the triple 18 to leave himself with a bullseye to finish.
Bennett missed the bullseye by around 15cm, instead hitting a three to leave 47. Bennett followed that leg up by just about managing to hit a 15 to leave 32, a finish most darts players like due to the ideal positioning of the double 16.
Not only did he fail to hit the double, he failed to hit the board. In his final dart, he missed the double by a long way again and only just managed to keep it on the outer rim of the board.
Due to Harrington’s struggles in the leg, he was given another three darts to win the leg. But he found himself chasing doubles, hitting a 16, an eight and a four while not even coming close to hitting any of the doubles.
The video will be sober viewing to a player who was tipped to become the new Phil Taylor in the past. Instead, he faces a long time on the sidelines while his case is investigated.
A statement from the DRA said: “The Darts Regulation Authority with support from the Gambling Commission Sports Betting Intelligence Unit conducted a thorough investigation into the allegation. The DRA Chairman Nigel Mawer has now decided that Leighton Bennett and Billy Warriner both have a case to answer for a number of serious breaches of the DRA Rules.
“As a result of this decision, Leighton Bennett and Billy Warriner have been suspended from attending or competing in DRA governed events until the conclusion of the hearing or hearings and the determination of this matter. Both players have the right to appeal the suspension decision.
“Their case will be referred to the DRA Disciplinary Committee where a formal hearing will take place on a date to be confirmed. There is no suggestion that the other players in the matches in question were involved in any way.”
