Chris Wakelin scores big win to reach the 2026 Champion of Champions snooker final

In what is guaranteed to be an all-English affair, Wakelin will face either Shaun Murphy or Kyren Wilson in Sunday’s title decider at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester where a top prize of £150,000 is on offer.

On Friday evening, world number 12 Wakelin scored one of the biggest wins of his 13-year professional snooker career as he defeated Neil Robertson, 6-2, to reach his fifth top-flight final.

Having won the tournament’s opening group on Monday - dethroning current Champion of Champions title holder Mark Selby in the process - Wakelin had to wait several days to get back on the baize, but he took the opening frame with the aid of a 54 break, although his opponent did have the chance to force a re-spotted black but missed the final yellow.

A two-time winner of this crown, Robertson quickly got over that disappointment by compiling a 108 in frame two, and it looked as if he was going to nudge in front as he built a sizeable lead in the third, but it was Wakelin who completed a turnaround and pinched it on the final pink.

The bulk of the scoring during the opening mini-session came from Australian Robertson - a 69 helped him in restoring parity at 2-2 - but a big moment came after the interval in frame five when he missed the final brown whilst on a counter break of 50. Wakelin - who had earlier made a 67 - stepped up to eventually secure it and go ahead by one for the third time.

That crucial miss from Robertson seemed to be a catalyst as he scored just nine points across the final three frames, with Wakelin registering runs of 55, 96 and 63 for four in-a-row and a minimum pay day of £60,000 from this event.

A winner of the Snooker Shoot Out in 2023 and last December’s Scottish Open, Wakelin is appearing in his second Champion of Champions campaign. He didn’t win a frame on his debut three years ago, but now he’s one match away from claiming one of the sport’s most prestigious accolades.

Wakelin can take inspiration from Mark Williams who was champion in 2024 despite having never won a match in it before that year.

Murphy and Wilson clash in a very tasty second semi-final on Saturday night in Leicester. Murphy has yet to drop a frame in this year’s tournament and has won his last six meeting against his opponent, but Wilson is the most in-form player in the world, currently on a 14-match winning streak and has recently won back-to-back titles at the Northern Ireland Open and International Championship.

To view the full draw, results, schedule, and other information from the 2026 Champion of Champions, visit our tournament information centre here.