Darts ace Jonny Clayton's wife to blame for 'thousands lost'
Jonny Clayton jocularly holds his wife responsible for a choice that, in his view, might have cost him a tidy sum.
At 50 years old, Clayton recently made it to the final of the World Cup of Darts with teammate Gerwyn Price but ultimately lost to the Northern Irish duo of Daryl Gurney and Josh Rock, who clinched victory after a tense sudden-death leg in Frankfurt.
At every dart event, fans are immediately aware of Clayton's presence as his entrance song is none other than Chuck Berry's legendary Johnny B. Goode.
Nevertheless, his walk-on routine could have had a different vibe altogether, had he chosen the renowned hit Mr Brightside by the Killers. It was his wife who advised against opting for this particular track.
Instead, Nathan Aspinall adopted Mr Brightside as his entrance music, which has subsequently become one of the most iconic darts anthems. A few of Aspinall's rivals, including Dave Chisnall and Mike De Decker, have voiced their criticism at the PDC's pick of Aspinall for this season's Premier League, reports Wales Online.
They suggest that his walkout song may have swayed his selection for its "entertainment" value over his darts prowess.
Being part of the Premier League entails playing for sizeable cash prizes, with £10,000 on the line for each nightly win and even larger sums for advancing to the final stages. With a hint of humour, Clayton suggested that if not for his wife's aversion to Mr Brightside, that prize money might have been his.
Jonny Clayton shared a light-hearted anecdote on the Tops and Tales podcast about how his wife, Ellen, influenced his walk-on song choice for the Premier League, mentioning: "Well, right, you couldn't believe this or not, but I think Ellen, my wife, has cost me thousands in the Premier League because the walk-on song I wanted was Mr. Brightside.
"Serious to God. So I blame Ellen. Yeah, it was Mr Brightside, and she said, 'No, I think something else. I don't think that would be good.' So it's her fault. So yeah, that's true. Mr Brightside."
Discussing with Nathan Aspinall about the situation, Clayton added with a chuckle: "I have told Nathan. Yeah, he just laughs. He goes, 'Thank you, Ellen.'".
Despite not having his preferred tune, Clayton remains positive about his current theme music, insisting: "It's still iconic in its own way, you know. It's got my name in it."
In his Premier League debut year in 2021, the Welsh darts star took down Michael van Gerwen with a 10-8 victory in the semi-final.
He rounded off an incredible first-time campaign in the Premier League Darts by triumphing over Jose de Sousa in the final with an 11-5 score, netting a cool £250,000 in prize money.
On this year's ProTour, Clayton is nailing it, bagging the Players Championship 14 title back in April, and notching up his third European Tour title at the Dutch Darts Championship last month.
On the PDC Order of Merit, Clayton holds the World No. 5 spot, having raked in £557,750 from PDC events over the past two years.
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