Dom Taylor has dramatically been thrown out of the World Darts Championship after failing a drugs test for the second time in 13 months.
Taylor, 27, cruised to a 3-0 win over Oskar Lukasiak on his Ally Pally debut last Sunday and was due to face Jonny Clayton in the second round of the tournament.
But the Bristol-born star returned an ‘adverse analytical finding’ following his victory over the Swede, triggering his immediate suspension from all competitions governed by the Darts Regulation Authority (DRA).
‘In line with its ongoing anti-doping procedures the PDC and DRA are conducting drug testing during the 2025/26 Paddy Power World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace,’ a statement by the Professional Darts Corporation reads.
‘On 19 December, the DRA was notified of an adverse analytical finding in respect of the player Dom Taylor resulting from a test conducted on 14 December.
‘As a result of this and in line with relevant DRA processes, Dom Taylor has been suspended from participating in any DRA regulated events with immediate effect.
Dom Taylor has been thrown out of the World Darts Championship after failing a drugs test
Taylor was due to face Jonny Clayton in the next round but has been suspended immediately
‘This matter will now be the subject of a disciplinary process in line with the relevant DRA Anti-Doping Rules.
‘The DRA will not be making any further comment pending the outcome of this confidential process.’
It comes just days after Taylor opened up about a failed drugs test which saw him withdraw from the 2024 Players Championship.
‘The Tower’ returned a positive sample for a banned substance on the eve of the tournament and initially was handed a two-year suspension.
However, the ban was reduced to three months when the substance was found not to be performance enhancing, before being cut to just one month after he agreed to take a UK Anti Doping-approved three-month treatment programme.
Speaking after defeating Lukasiak last Sunday, Taylor was asked about how hard it was to recover from the ban.
‘Massively, biggest let down of my life,’ he said. ‘But I’ve rebounded back, and here we are.
‘I wasn’t speaking to anyone, keeping myself to myself and just practising. If I didn’t believe I was going to walk home with a million pounds, I wouldn’t be here.’
His suspension meant that he missed the World Darts Championship last year, making his victory over Lukasiak – which included a trio of 100+ checkouts – his Ally Pally debut.
Taylor’s exit means Clayton will now face either Michael Smith or Niels Zonneveld after receiving a bye into the third round.