Mark Selby beat Judd Trump 10-8 in a rollercoaster UK Championship Final on Sunday at the Barbican in York.
The four-time world champion became just the fourth man to win ten Triple Crown titles.
He said, “It’s amazing to win another Triple Crown. It’s what I set my targets for every year. Chuffed to get another one.”
Selby, who ended a nine-year wait for a third UK title, began the match in scintillating form. He pinched a crucial fourth frame, after world number one, Trump, missed frame ball, to take a 4-0 lead.
The match threatened to turn into a procession when Selby hit a 105 break to make it 5-0 after the interval. But Trump, who won last year’s event, rallied to take the next two.
However, the Leicester cueist managed to win frame eight, holding a 6-2 advantage after the afternoon session.
Controversy and Trump fights back
Again, Trump looked out of it when Selby won frame nine, but took three on the spin to reduce the deficit to two.
Frame 11 could so easily have been a turning point. Selby put his opponent in a nasty snooker, and Trump’s failed escape attempt resulted in a free ball.
The Bristolian contested the decision, and in an act of sportsmanship, Selby agreed. He was given another attempt and was successful. Former World Champions Steve Davis and John Parrott later backed the referee’s decision.
Trump won the frame when he would almost certainly have lost, to make it 7-4. He looked to have Selby on the ropes in frame 12 with a 105 break of his own.
Yet the 42-year-old drew on his experience to win another frame after the interval. Trump still refused to give up and knocked in the match’s highest break to trail 8-6. He then took the next to move just one behind.
The two players traded the next two, with Selby missing a huge chance to wrap up the match in frame 17.
However, he was not to be denied and took a 10-8 victory. Selby’s bottle under pressure, something he is renowned for, helped him over the line.
“Mark was the best player all week,” said Trump. “He played very, very well and thoroughly deserved the win.”
Selby wins again while Trump’s wait carries on
The two players had met just a month earlier in the final of the Champion of Champions. There, again, Selby prevailed, winning 10-5.
Trump still hasn’t won a tournament since taking his second UK crown in 2024.
The 36-year-old has five more ranking titles than Selby, but Triple Crowns are a different story. He only has half as many as the world number six.
Meanwhile, Selby has now overtaken the great John Higgins, and is only behind O’Sullivan (23), Hendry (18) and Davis (15). They are also the only three players to have won more than four world titles. Trump’s only win at the Crucible came in 2019.
The next Triple Crown event, the Masters, takes place in January. The draw, involving the world’s top 16, also took place on Sunday.
Trump will make his 15th consecutive appearance, and 16th overall. He faces 2011 champion Ding Junhui in round one after taking his second title in 2023.
Selby plays 36-year-old debutant Xiao Guodong. It will be his 19th consecutive time at the event. He won on debut in 2008 and was also victorious in 2010 and 2013.
