Brilliant Bunting wins Mr Vegas Nordic Darts Masters

Stephen Bunting stormed to victory in the Mr Vegas Nordic Darts Masters on Saturday, defeating Rob Cross 8-4 in Copenhagen to clinch his second World Series title of 2025.

It was a third consecutive final on the World Series circuit for Bunting, and a repeat of their title showdown in Den Bosch in January, with Bunting exacting his revenge on Cross in a superb performance.

It looked evenly poised at three-apiece at the first break, with Cross having sunk a 116 checkout on the way.

However, a run of five straight legs for a revitalised Bunting - including a 104 checkout in the eighth leg - saw him stretch to the brink of victory at 7-3.

Cross looked spent, and despite breaking the rut at 7-4, could do little to stop Bunting as he crossed the line to add the Nordic Darts Masters title to his Bahrain crown from earlier this year.

It's a welcome return to form for the St Helens star, after he had struggled in recent months with a gruelling Premier League campaign.

"The way I have been playing, I was wondering whether I would ever win a title again," stated Bunting, who had lost his last nine games against Cross in all competitions.

"I am really proud of myself the last few days. I have put the effort in, played some great darts and I believe I am a deserved winner.

"When you come and play in front of a crowd like this, you don't want to let them down.

"I saw there were a lot of Bunting fans out there, and they really get me through. It was a privilege to play in front of them and hopefully I can maintain this form for the rest of the season."

Bunting's run to the title started with a routine 6-3 win over Sweden's Oskar Lukasiak on Friday.

He then saw off Jonny Clayton by the same scoreline in the quarter-finals, to set up a clash with Nathan Aspinall in the last four - who himself had defeated Luke Littler 6-3 in the previous round.

There was a late scare for Bunting in the last four, after he spurned chances and saw Aspinall recover from 6-1 down, before eventually reaching the final in a 7-5 victory.

As for Cross, he blitzed his way through the quarter-finals by whitewashing Chris Dobey, landing three ton-plus finishes in the process.

Gerwyn Price, who had earlier seen off Luke Humphries 6-3 in a high-quality affair, was Cross' next victim as he powered through 7-4 to set up the title bout with Bunting.

"It wasn't meant to be for me - I probably ran out of steam in the end," said Cross.

"Credit to Stephen, he was absolutely brilliant and I just didn't have it in the end.

"For me, I need to carry on fighting. I wanted to win so badly here, but the intensity killed me and I just didn't perform in the final."

The World Series of Darts continues on June 27-28 as the PDC returns to New York's Madison Square Garden with the 2025 US Darts Masters, before heading to Gliwice, Poland, for the Poland Darts Masters on July 4-5.

Click here for match stats & results.

2025 Mr Vegas Nordic Darts Masters
Saturday June 7
Quarter-Finals
Stephen Bunting 6-3 Jonny Clayton
Nathan Aspinall 6-3 Luke Littler
Rob Cross 6-0 Chris Dobey
Gerwyn Price 6-3 Luke Humphries                                        

Semi-Finals
Stephen Bunting 7-5 Nathan Aspinall
Rob Cross 7-4 Gerwyn Price                                                

Final
Stephen Bunting 8-4 Rob Cross