Motomu Sakai Darts – “The Alien” XENO Darts at Diplomatgames

Motomu Sakai is one of the most interesting new faces in Japanese darts. The right-hander from Tokyo first made a name for himself in the Japanese soft darts scene and then developed into one of Asia's strongest players in international steel darts. Target Japan describes Sakai as an offensive, fearless player with enormous energy and charismatic stage presence.

Sakai became internationally known at the latest with his debut at the PDC World Darts Championship 2025/26. There, he thrilled the audience not only with his game, but also with an extraordinary walk-on, dance performances, and a personality that clearly sets him apart from many rather reserved professionals.

In line with this, Target Japan developed the striking XENO Signature Series together with Motomu Sakai. The XENO G1 was released in April 2026 and combines a futuristic alien/UFO design with a technically sophisticated 90% tungsten barrel.

At Diplomatgames you'll find Motomu Sakai Darts and suitable Target Japan accessories. But which darts does Motomu Sakai play, how heavy are his XENO Darts, how did he even get into darts, and what makes "The Alien" so extraordinary? Here you can learn more about the career, playing style, successes, and equipment of the Japanese crowd favorite.

Motomu Sakai Profile

Name: Motomu Sakai
Japanese Name: 酒井 素
Nickname: The Alien
Japanese Pet Name: Motchi / もっち
Birthday: December 3, 1997
Birthplace: Tokyo, Japan
Nationality: Japan
Throwing Hand: Right
Height: 167 cm
Dart Sponsor: Target Japan
Signature Series: XENO
XENO G1 Steel: 23 g and 25 g
XENO G1 Soft: 19 g barrel weight
Tungsten: 90%
PDC World Championship Debut: 2025/26
PDC Asian Tour 2025: 4 tournament victories
JAPAN Tour: multiple top placements and tour winner
Previous Sponsor: TIGA.

Who is Motomu Sakai?

Motomu Sakai was born on December 3, 1997, in Tokyo. His official Japanese professional profile now lists him as a right-handed player and one of the established top players on the Japanese soft dart tour.

Sakai initially developed in soft darts. This is not unusual for Japanese professionals, as soft darts have a much higher professional standing in Japan than in large parts of Europe.

Over time, however, Sakai began to play steel darts more and more intensely.

This decision paid off.

On the PDC Asian Tour, the Japanese player quickly developed into one of the strongest players in the region. Target now describes him as a leading Asian player who has successfully transitioned from soft to steel darts.

How did Motomu Sakai get into darts?

The story behind his entry is one of the more curious in professional darts.

Sakai started around the age of 16.

However, the reason was not that he absolutely wanted to become world champion.

Friends told him that he could impress girls more if he could play darts.

So Motomu started playing.

What initially seemed to be meant to impress girls developed into a serious passion.

An older official TIGA profile from 2021 already listed Sakai with seven years of dart experience. His stated long-term goal at that time was to become Japan's number one.

He has since come significantly closer to this goal.

Motomu Sakai on the PDC Asian Tour

His big international breakthrough came especially through the PDC Asian Tour.

2025 was an outstanding year.

In May, Sakai won two Asian Tour tournaments back-to-back in Mongolia, temporarily putting him at the top of the Asian Tour Order of Merit.

By the end of the season, the Japanese player had a total of four Asian Tour titles in 2025.

These achievements ultimately also earned him qualification for the PDC World Championship.

And Sakai continued in 2026.

In July 2026, he won another Asian Tour event and remained at the top of the rankings.

Thus, The Alien is now clearly part of the Asian steel darts elite.

Motomu Sakai at the PDC World Championship

His debut at the PDC World Darts Championship 2025/26 made Motomu Sakai known in Europe within minutes.

In the first round, he faced Frenchman Thibault Tricole.

Sakai won decisively with:

3-0 in sets.

But almost more attention than the result was given to his demeanor.

Even during his walk-on, Sakai danced exuberantly across the stage.

After winning sets, the show continued.

The audience at Alexandra Palace reacted enthusiastically.

From a player relatively unknown outside of Asia, he became a crowd favorite within one evening.

In round two, his tournament ended against Andreas Harrysson.

Nevertheless, his World Championship debut was a success.

Why is Motomu Sakai called "The Alien"?

Target officially lists Motomu Sakai as "The Alien".

And when you look at his player identity, it quickly becomes clear why this name fits perfectly.

His demeanor is unusual.

His facial expressions are unusual.

His walk-ons are unusual.

And his current darts also look unusual.

Target Japan has therefore built the entire XENO series around an alien and UFO theme. Even in the barrels, there are three milled so-called "Alien Eyes".

In some English-language media, Sakai was also referred to as "The Creature". For your Diplomatgames page, however, I would use The Alien as the main nickname because Target currently officially markets him that way.

Motomu Sakai – Entertainer and Darts Professional

Sakai is a perfect example of how a professional can be both a serious athlete and an entertainer.

On stage, he dances, makes faces, and interacts with the audience.

As soon as he stands at the oche, however, he becomes a dangerous scorer.

Target describes his style as charismatic, offensive, and fearless.

Precisely this combination made him so popular at his World Championship debut.

The Japanese player obviously does not try to be an emotionless dart machine.

Sakai wants to win – but apparently, you can also have fun doing it.

What is Motomu Sakai's playing style?

Motomu Sakai's playing style is offensive, energetic, and self-confident.

Target particularly highlights his strong scoring. Even before his international breakthrough, Sakai was regularly among the top players on the Japanese professional tour.

He also showed his scoring potential in steel darts.

At the season opener of the Steel Tour Japan 2026, for example, Sakai achieved a personal tournament best of 103.19 average.

This performance explains why Target developed a comparatively long barrel with a clear rear grip for his XENO series.

The setup is designed to support a stable and powerful release.

Which darts does Motomu Sakai play?

Motomu Sakai currently plays Target Japan XENO Darts.

The XENO G1 is the first Prime Series dart generation that was developed together with him since his move to Target Japan. It was released on April 28, 2026.

 

What is special about the XENO G1 Darts?

Visually, the XENO G1 is certainly one of the more striking Target Japan darts.

But the design is not just for show.

Target uses a front-taper barrel, which is designed to support consistent acceleration and a straight flight.

The rear section is particularly interesting.

There, Target combines:

Shark Cuts + futuristic milling.

The design is based on the thrusters or propulsion elements of a UFO.

The grip is intended to be clearly noticeable, but not unnecessarily aggressive.

The three "Alien Eyes"

In the front barrel area, it gets even more unusual.

Target has integrated three 3D-milled "Alien Eyes" there.

They are not exclusively for aesthetics.

The structures can be felt with the fingers and thus serve as an orientation point for a reproducible grip position.

Exactly that is clever for a signature dart.

An optical theme simultaneously becomes a functional element.

In addition, there's the striking Electro-Green coating, which rounds off the entire alien/UFO look of the XENO series.

Who are Motomu Sakai XENO Darts suitable for?

The XENO G1 can be particularly interesting if you prefer a longer steel dart with a clearly defined rear grip.

The steel version is relatively long at 51 mm.

The dart is therefore particularly interesting for players who:

• grip more towards the back or middle,
• like a clearly noticeable Shark Grip,
• prefer a long barrel,
• are looking for a front taper,
• play between 23 and 25 grams,
• want to use Target Swiss Points,
• or simply want an unusual design.

Front-grippers also get the ring cuts and the palpable Alien Eye structures in the front area.

Motomu Sakai and Target Japan

Sakai is now part of the Target Japan Team.

With XENO, his first Prime Series model was released in April 2026 after the start of the collaboration.

Target didn't just put his name on a standard dart.

Practically the entire design language was developed around Sakai's personality:

Alien Eyes, UFO thrusters, Electro Green, monster faces, and futuristic milling.

This makes XENO one of those player darts where personality and product design are particularly closely linked.

Which manufacturer did Motomu Sakai play for previously?

Before his current Target Japan partnership, Motomu Sakai was under contract with TIGA, among others.

TIGA officially introduced him as a new signing in 2021. At that time, he was still mainly known by his Japanese nickname "Motchi".

For your category page, the manufacturer history can therefore be summarized as follows:

TIGA → Target Japan

Currently relevant for buyers is clearly Target Japan with the XENO G1 Series.

Motomu Sakai and Soft Darts

Although many European fans only got to know Sakai through the PDC World Championship, his sporting roots are strongly in soft darts.

He continues to participate in the SOFT DARTS PROFESSIONAL TOUR JAPAN. His official profile lists him as fourth in the annual ranking for 2025; in 2026, he was also fourth at the time of the current ranking.

In 2025, Sakai also won Stage 18 in Chiba.

In 2026, another tour victory followed at Stage 5 in Kyoto.

He is therefore active in both worlds:

professional soft darts in Japan + international PDC steel darts.

Motomu Sakai and the Steel Tour Japan 2026

Sakai also immediately showed his strength on the new Japanese Steel Tour in 2026.

At the season opener, he won the first event and reached further finals in subsequent events.

Among other things, he threw a 103.19 average, which was one of his strongest documented performances.

This underlines that Sakai is no longer just a soft dart player.

His steel darts level now clearly extends into the professional international arena.

Motomu Sakai at the World Cup of Darts

In 2026, Sakai, along with Haruki Muramatsu, qualified to represent Japan at the PDC World Cup of Darts.

At that time, Sakai was leading the PDC Asian Tour Rankings.

For Japanese darts, this combination is interesting:

Muramatsu represents the experienced generation.

Sakai is one of the new faces.

Thus, the Japanese team combines different dart generations.

What are Motomu Sakai's hobbies?

This is where things get a lot funnier.

Sakai apparently loves dancing.

This is not only evident on the darts stage.

During his World Championship stay, he spoke, among other things, about wanting to play Dance Dance Revolution and sing karaoke.

This fits perfectly with his entire stage personality.

With Motomu Sakai, the dancing during the walk-on therefore seems less like a staged PDC marketing idea and more like an actual part of his personality.

Motomu Sakai's crazy walk-on

At his World Championship debut, Sakai became a crowd favorite even before the first dart was thrown.

He danced during his walk-on, made faces, and continued his show even after winning sets.

This was particularly striking in the often very serious professional tournament environment.

And Sakai himself obviously enjoyed it.

He even explained that dancing helps him and has a positive influence on his game.

Not everyone loves the show

Of course, such an appearance is not equally well received by everyone.

After Sakai's much-noticed World Championship debut, there were also critical voices regarding his show and stage presence.

Michael van Gerwen, for example, expressed skepticism about the great attention surrounding the Japanese player.

For Sakai, that changed little.

His personality is now firmly part of his public profile – and Target Japan even consciously embraces this individuality with XENO.

Motomu Sakai – Japan's Alien on the Rise

Motomu Sakai's story is unusual.

At 16, he started playing darts because friends told him it would help him impress girls.

He developed into a top player in Japanese soft darts.

Then he became increasingly strong on the PDC Asian Tour.

In 2025, he won four Asian Tour tournaments.

He then qualified for the PDC World Championship for the first time and won his debut match 3-0.

In 2026, he continued to win on the Asian Tour and led the rankings in July.

In parallel, Target Japan developed the futuristic XENO series with him.

Thus, "Motchi" from Tokyo has become one of the most internationally interesting Japanese dart players within a few years.

The Alien has landed.

Buy Motomu Sakai Darts at Diplomatgames

Do you want to buy Motomu Sakai darts or are you looking for the striking Target Japan XENO Darts?

At Diplomatgames, you will find various Motomu Sakai XENO Darts from Target Japan as well as suitable accessories, depending on availability.

The current XENO G1 is available as:

19g soft-tip dart
23g steel-tip dart
25g steel-tip dart.

Its characteristic features are the front-taper barrel, the distinctive rear grip, the three Alien Eye milling cuts, and the Electro-Green design.

When making your selection, pay attention not only to the weight, but also to the barrel length, diameter, grip position, and grip strength.

Discover the available Motomu Sakai darts at Diplomatgames now and find out if the extraordinary XENO setup suits your own throwing style.

FAQ – Frequently asked questions about Motomu Sakai

Which darts does Motomu Sakai play?

Motomu Sakai plays Target Japan XENO Darts. The XENO G1 is his first Prime Series signature series at Target and consists of 90% tungsten.

How many grams does Motomu Sakai play?

The XENO G1 is available as a 19g soft-tip dart as well as 23g and 25g steel-tip darts. Both steel models have a 51 mm long barrel.

Why is Motomu Sakai called "The Alien"?

Target officially lists Sakai under the nickname "The Alien". His XENO series directly embraces the theme with UFO elements, Electro-Green coating, and three milled "Alien Eyes."

How did Motomu Sakai start playing darts?

Sakai started playing darts at around 16 years old after friends told him it might make him more popular with girls. From this rather unusual reason, a professional dart career eventually developed.

Has Motomu Sakai played in the PDC World Championship?

Yes. In his debut at the PDC World Darts Championship 2025/26, Sakai defeated Thibault Tricole 3-0.

What are Motomu Sakai's biggest achievements?

His most significant achievements include four PDC Asian Tour titles in 2025, further Asian Tour successes in 2026, his World Championship debut victory, and tournament wins on the Japanese soft-tip and steel-tip dart tours.

Which manufacturer is Motomu Sakai with?

Motomu Sakai currently plays for Target Japan. Previously, he was part of the TIGA team, among others.

Where can you buy Motomu Sakai darts?

You can buy Motomu Sakai darts at Diplomatgames. Here you will find Target Japan XENO steel-tip and soft-tip darts, as well as suitable XENO accessories, depending on availability.