Kim Huybrechts is relishing the prospect of a darting duel with world number one Gerwyn Price at the William Hill World Darts Championship on Monday evening.
The animated Belgian is up against defending champion Price in the third round at Alexandra Palace, in what is expected to be a fiery encounter.
Huybrechts defeated Steve Beaton in his opening match before Christmas but has always had one eye on a potential showdown with the holder of the Sid Waddell Trophy.
“It’s going to be a classic,” said Huybrechts, who is bidding to reach the last 16 for the first time in three years.
“I’m going to give it some, he’s going to give it some. We both like to play that way and it is going to be a classic game for sure.
“I’ve got nothing to lose playing the World Champion and world number one. We love to give each other banter and that is not going to change.
“I can only win. I will be on at prime time; everybody will be watching and I’ll be prepared. I’m not going to say that I am going to win but I am going to give the crowd a show. It will be a feisty one.”
Huybrechts claimed a comfortable 3-1 success over veteran ace Beaton in round two but wasn’t happy with his performance, though cited his challenging preparation as a factor.
The former World Cup of Darts finalist was sent back to Belgium at the French border when attempting to drive to the UK to best protect himself from unnecessary close contact during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He eventually managed to get a flight to the UK but arrived later than planned, meaning he didn’t get the amount of practice he had planned to.
“My preparation wasn’t good, including a difficult journey here,” explained Huybrechts.
“At one point I was worrying if I was going to be able to get to London at all. Then the game against Steve was one of the worst performances I have ever had at Ally Pally.
“That hurt me a bit because I have been playing well for the last couple of months and my practice has been going well but my performance didn’t reflect that.
“The first game is always the hardest I’m just looking forward to the next one.
“I was disappointed in myself for not reflecting the form I’ve been in but I’m feeling good. I’ve had some good runs and performances recently. The next game will be four-hundred times better.”
Price v Huybrechts is one of two third round ties taking place on Monday evening’s session.
The World Championship is being broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and RTL7, and on PDCTV (excluding UK and Netherlands based subscribers).
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Third Round
James Wade bye Vincent Van der Voort*
Gerwyn Price v Kim Huybrechts
Jonny Clayton v Gabriel Clemens
*Vincent van der Voort withdrew due to testing positive for COVID-19