Motomu Sakai extended his lead at the top of the 2026 Steel Tour Japan rankings last weekend, winning 18 consecutive matches to clinch a hat-trick of titles on home soil. Sakai featured in all four finals during the opening weekend of action back in June, claiming the Event One title to put himself in pole […]
Motomu Sakai extended his lead at the top of the 2026 Steel Tour Japan rankings last weekend, winning 18 consecutive matches to clinch a hat-trick of titles on home soil.
Sakai featured in all four finals during the opening weekend of action back in June, claiming the Event One title to put himself in pole position for World Darts Championship qualification.
The 28-year old increased his advantage at the summit with a string of imperious displays in Events 5-8 in Osaka, as Ryuta Arihara also returned to the winner’s circle on August 15-16.
Arihara kicked off the weekend’s proceedings with Event Five glory on Saturday, sealed with a convincing 5-2 success against Ryusei Azemoto.
Following a brace of whitewash wins to open his campaign, the 38-year-old recorded successive 4-2 victories against Akimune Matsuyoshi and Hiroki Kaneko respectively.
Arihara then stormed to a 5-1 win over Sakai in the semi-finals, averaging 97.43 before converting 81, 97 and 86 finishes during his clinical 5-2 demolition of Azemoto in the final.
However, Event Six sparked the start of the Sakai show, as the enigmatic Japanese star celebrated a trio of titles to strengthen his bid for an Alexandra Palace return.
Sakai surrendered a solitary leg in his opening four matches, before winning through a high-quality semi-final against Azemoto, averaging almost 97 to complete a 5-3 victory.
Sakai capped off a dominant campaign with a 5-2 win against Joji Kanuma in the Event Six showpiece, opening his account with a 117 finish and reeling off three straight legs to triumph.
However, Japan’s World Cup star survived a major scare in the opening round of Event Seven, as Nobuhiro Yamamoto squandered three match darts in a hard-fought decider.
Normal service was soon resumed for Sakai, who eased through to the semi-finals with a hat-trick of 4-1 successes, before he avenged his Event Five defeat against Arihara with a 5-2 win in the last four.
This set up a showdown against Tatsuya Uekusa for the Event Seven crown, and Sakai completed another resounding 5-2 victory courtesy of a three-leg flurry in the latter stages.
Event Eight followed a similar pattern, with Sakai dispatching Kanuma in a repeat of the Event Six decider to wrap up his fourth Steel Tour Japan title of 2026.
Following back-to-back whitewash wins to open his title bid, Sakai swept aside Event Seven runner-up Uekusa, while recovering from 3-2 down to edge past Akito Yamagata in the quarter-finals.
Japan’s premier player then recorded a comprehensive 5-2 win in his semi-final clash against Shunta Takayama, before overcoming Kanuma by the same scoreline to extend his winning run to 18 matches.
The overall winner of the Steel Tour Japan rankings after all 12 events are completed will earn a place at the 2026/27 Paddy Power World Darts Championship in December, with Sakai boasting a considerable lead with just four events remaining.
The 2026 Steel Tour Japan will conclude next month, as Events 9-12 take place in Kanagawa from September 22-23.
2026 Steel Tour Japan
August 15-16, Osaka, Japan
Event Five
Semi-Finals
Ryuta Arihara 5-1 Motomu Sakai
Ryusei Azemoto 5-2 Sho Okano
Final
Ryuta Arihara 5-2 Ryusei Azemoto
Event Six
Semi-Finals
Motomu Sakai 5-3 Ryusei Azemoto
Joji Kanuma 5-4 Shogo Ikeda
Final
Motomu Sakai 5-2 Joji Kanuma
Event Seven
Semi-Finals
Motomu Sakai 5-2 Ryuta Arihara
Tatsuya Uekusa 5-3 Youhi Watanabe
Final
Motomu Sakai 5-2 Tatsuya Uekusa
Event Eight
Semi-Finals
Motomu Sakai 5-2 Shunta Takayama
Joji Kanuma 5-4 Yuta Hamabe
Final
Motomu Sakai 5-2 Joji Kanuma