Michael van Gerwen delivered a ruthless response to opponent Michael Unterbuchner's pre-match jest after powering into the last 16 of the European Darts Grand Prix in Sindelfingen with a commanding 6-1 victory. The Dutchman's dominant win set up a clash with Jermaine Wattimena, but the post-match focus centered on his blunt reaction to remarks made by Unterbuchner just 24 hours earlier.
After claiming only his second-ever win on the European Tour stage by beating William O'Connor, Unterbuchner had joked on stage in German about his upcoming opponent, saying, "Michael van Gerwen? Who is that? No, no just kidding. I'm looking forward to it." He also mentioned his wife booking an extra hotel night, hinting at quiet belief. Van Gerwen, however, was in no mood to entertain the humor, stating, "No, he didn't make a joke. He's one of those guys who tries to be funny, you know what I mean? He's never beaten me in his life and he will never beat me in his life. He's not good enough. Even my B game beats him." When asked if he paid attention to such comments during the match, Van Gerwen added, "The day I'm going to worry about Unterbuchner, that's the day I'm going to quit darts."
While the headlines were dominated by his comments, Van Gerwen's performance was efficient, if not flawless. He admitted frustration with one leg where he struggled on double one, calling it "a disaster," but emphasized, "I won the game, and that's the most important thing." He also noted, "I think the crowd is enjoying themselves, and that's the only thing that matters at the moment." Sindelfingen has been a successful venue for him, having lifted the title there twice before, with his last win in 2018, and he expressed hope to "give it a good go tomorrow."
Standing in his way next is Jermaine Wattimena, a player Van Gerwen knows extremely well from their youth days and has dominated historically. He acknowledged, "Of course I've got a good record. I've known Jermaine for a very long time, since we were youth players. To be honest, I've always had the better of him." However, he offered a note of caution, saying, "He's a good player, he's in good shape at the moment and playing some good darts. So I need to make sure I play well tomorrow."
