O’SULLIVAN THREATENS ELITE TOUR BREAKAWAY

RONNIE O’SULLIVAN threatened to start a breakaway tour after keeping his bid for a record seventh UK Championship title alive yesterday. The Rocket edged past veteran Dubliner Ken Doherty 6-5 to reach the third round at York’s Barbican Centre. But five-time world champion O’Sullivan, 42, then urged fellow ‘Class of 1992’ member John Higgins to join him in creating a separate Champions League of snooker. A dejected Higgins, 43, claimed after losing on Saturday night he was close to retirement and lacking form and motivation. But world No4 O’Sullivan (below), the game’s biggest box office star but at war with World Snooker on several fronts, believes he can find a solution. ‘It is very sad when you see someone like John Higgins talking about retirement. I will talk to him and find out what he’s thinking,’ said O’Sullivan. ‘Maybe John and me can take a breakaway, make our own tour. ‘You have the Chinese kids who have been banned recently, maybe a bit heavy, and a couple of top-ranked Chinese players are tired of the travelling. ‘If there are people who are fed up and want to play a Champions League style thing with titles, money and trophies in good venues — it is possible but I need players. ‘It is a big ask, they would have to give up a tour card and not play in the World Championship. ‘But there is space for a 128-player tour, and then a crème de la crème. ‘I wouldn’t be doing the Ryanair service.’ Doherty, 49, said: ‘I couldn’t see how it would work, it has been tried before in other sports and it hasn’t always worked. ‘I don’t think the public would like it, they want to see them play in all our blue-riband events, this being one of them. ‘Why break away when you could go on and create more history. And I honestly don’t think John Higgins would be up for it anyway. ‘I am disappointed today,’ added the 1997 world champion when reflecting on his near miss against O’Sullivan. ‘It was a chance to cause a big upset. I left a red in the jaws at 4-1, if I go 5-1, I win the match.’ However, Barry Hearn hit back at O’Sullivan, especially his comments about Chinese stars Yu Delu and Cao Yupeng, who were banned for a combined 16 years for match-fixing. Hearn said: ‘Harshly! Are you serious? Cheats were exposed and punished. ‘Please keep such stupid comments to yourself. You are getting ridiculous, and I expect better from a player of your standing. Enough.’