Alex has a g’night
BARNEY’S SAD EXIT IT’S SLIM PICKINGS FOR CROSS
■ UFC
ALEX VOLKANOVSKI became the first Australian-born fighter to win a title after his unanimous points victory over Max Holloway in Las Vegas.
After claiming the featherweight belt at UFC 245 on Saturday night, he said: “I got the job done and I’m telling you, I’m going to stay champion for a long time.”
ROB CROSS has brought forward his New Year detox after a shock exit at the first hurdle.
Whitewashed 3-0 by Kim Huybrechts, the 2018 world champion was honest enough to admit his form has suffered because he is too fat.
Cross (right) has piled on almost 5st in two and a half years and he will not be waiting until 2020 to start shedding the pounds.
The former electrician, who will drop down the world rankings from No.2 after Saturday’s defeat, said: “You’re only as good as your last game – and that wasn’t good.
“Next year I will make massive changes, because I haven’t felt brilliant for a while.
“I’m going to lose a load of weight – I feel too fat. You look in the mirror every day and think, ‘I have to change, I’ve let myself slip’.
“At least I can carry out my plans earlier than expected. I’ve got six weeks off now!
“Next year you will see a new Rob. I’m going to work on my fitness, lose some weight, make myself feel happy.
“It’s horrendous. I need to sort myself out.
“Being fitter and exercising will help me mentally because I’ve had this niggle eating away at me in my brain.
“We are talking nearly
TORTURED Raymond van Barneveld bowed out of darts with a whimper and said: “I will hate myself for the rest of my life.”
Beaten 3-1 by American southpaw Darin Young in the first round at the William Hill PDC World Championship, RVB was brutally honest about his final match before retirement.
He branded “amateur” and five world titles for nothing.
It was not supposed to happen like this.
According to the Hollywood script, the 52-year-old Dutchman would take his adoring ‘Barney Army’ on one last ride.
But his final checkout painful to watch.
“How can I be proud now? Of what? Five world titles? That is all in the past,” he said.
“I cannot live with myself right now. My legacy doesn’t matter – losing for the last two years, losing here in the first round, I am an amateur.
“I don’t belong at this level. The demons won and I’m a loser.
“Every day is a disappointment in my life. What could I have done himself an claimed his now counted was five stone I’ve put on since the UK Open in 2017. I could run 12 miles in those days – now I can hardly run 12 metres.” differently? Play better. Maybe I should have done fewer exhibition games and practised more.
“I had a practice session planned with Jeffrey de Zwaan but we couldn’t do it because he had a second-round match.
“So I tried to arrange a practice with Jermaine Wattimena and he couldn’t do it because he was playing in the afternoon, so then we went to Max Hopp – and he couldn’t do it because he was ill.
“Most of the time I was playing the board but boards don’t hit back.
“If you play the board, you don’t feel the pain – you have to play real opponents.”
Barney’s harshest critics might accuse him of wallowing in self-pity and that £3.5m in prize money alone in a 30-year career is not bad going for a postman from The Hague.
After all, nobody had heard of him in 1991 when Van Barneveld first appeared on our radars at the Lakeside. He is a household name in Holland now – not that he was having any of that.
Barney said: “They still don’t know who I am. Five world titles? That counts for nothing now.
“Not for me, not for the rest of my life. I will hate myself every single day.
“Why am I so harsh on myself? Why not? What have I achieved? Nothing.
“I put darts on the map in Holland – so? What does that say? Only one person has won more world titles than me... for now.
“Of course this is the lowest point of my career.”
Barney did at least concede it was probably a mistake to announce 12 months ago that 2019 would be his last year on the circuit.
He added: “Maybe I put on too much pressure, but what can you do?”
Here’s the deal, Barney. When the shock of defeat has disappeared and 30 years of memorable performances is not coloured by one surprise defeat, pour yourself a large drink, kick back and have a merry Christmas.
Darts will miss you.