UK Championship: Gary Wilson on record-breaking display and being tipped pennies by British rock star

ByEurosport

Published 11/11/2021 at 15:42 GMT

Former Crucible semi-finalist Gary Wilson has revealed how he should have made a 147 break on his way to setting a UK Championship record of four straight centuries two years ago. The British Open finalist has also amusingly revealed how he discovered a millionaire British rock star was not a heavy tipper during his days as a taxi driver in his native Tyneside.

Gary Wilson has recalled how he should have made a 147 in setting a snooker world record of five straight century breaks at the UK Championship two years ago.

The world number 21 trailed Chris Wakelin 4-0 in the last 64 at the Barbican Centre in York before embarking upon a stunning run of breaks as knocks of 67, 97, 134, 114, 100 and 124 saw him complete a breathtaking 6-4 win with his opponent contributing only 45 points in the final six frames.

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Wilson – who lost 6-4 to Mark Williams in the British Open final in August – has revealed he is frustrated he did not set a new professional record of five straight centuries when he reflects on the extraordinary match.

"In terms of pure quality in a match over six frames, that is the best I have ever played on tour," said Wilson, who shares the record of four consecutive competitive breaks with Shaun Murphy, John Higgins, Neil Robertson, Stephen Maguire, Mark Allen and Lu Ning. "One of them should have been a max as well.

The 97 I actually missed a black. That should have been a maximum. It should have five centuries in a row and one of them a max.

"I was still taking the negatives from it. The first half of the game was just ridiculous and the second half was ridiculous in another way."

Wilson begins his latest UK campaign against Ian Burns as the tournament returns to York's Barbican Centre later this month. His success in recent times has been a far cry from his days when he worked in a frozen food factory and drove a taxi to earn a living in Wallsend.

The straight-talking Newcastle United fan has earned over £450,000 in prize money since returning to the tour in 2013, including reaching the final of the 2015 China Open and the 2019 World Championship semi-finals, but admits his days driving a taxi was as memorable an eye-opener as potting balls.

"I remember picking up the singer Joe Elliott from Def Leppard," said Wilson on WST after the Pour Some Sugar On Me and Animal lead singer hopped in his cab.

"He was just hanging about on a street corner. I didn't know who he was. He says: 'Can I get in?'. You are not supposed to do that as a private hire.

"I've blown my cover now. He said he wanted to go to Yarm in the Middlesbrough area.

"I slowly realised that he was trying to hint to me he was in a big band. I get the impression he was thinking after 10 or 15 minutes: 'Why hasn't he mentioned it?' As if he was vying for attention.

"Then it came out he was the lead singer in Def Leppard. He said to me: 'Would you mind doing me a favour? My Porsche is parked up round the corner near the train station, would you mind taking me there?'

"I said: 'Have you been drinking tonight, Joe?' And he says: 'I've had a few, but don't you mind. If you can follow me back to the house, I'll pay you'.

"So I dropped him at the train station. He got in his little Porsche and we must have drove another five miles or something.

"At this point, I was thinking I don't know whether to believe him or if he was going to pay me. He drove up to this big estate and his house was there with two women waving.

"I knew then he was telling the truth when he's putting the code in for the gate. He comes back out. The fare was 67 or 68 quid and he gave me £70.

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"I thought: 'Come on'. Give us £80 or something like that for a rock star. But no, he rounded it up with a couple of pounds.

"I thought: 'It doesn't matter who you are, some people are just tight'. That's just the way it is."

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