11 months ago
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Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ali Carter’s toxic feud spilled over after their Masters final battle last weekend - and Barry Hearn is fed up with it.
O’Sullivan, who picked up his incredible eighth title, went on an X-rated tirade at Carter, who had accused the 48-year-old of ‘snotting on the floor’.
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The pair have shared a bitter war of words in the media, but their running battles go back years.
O’Sullivan claimed he hasn’t spoken to Carter for 20 years, and their previous meetings have been pretty frosty.
Back in 2018, their feud escalated when they barged into each other at the World Snooker Championships at the Crucible.
"That’s for being Mr Angry. You shoulder barged me earlier, I thought I’d give you one back," O'Sullivan said to Carter.
“Thank you, it’s very nice of you,” Carter replied, before the referee had to step in.
Carter would then go on to accuse O’Sullivan of trying to intimidate him.
That feud showed no signs of cooling at the Masters, with snotgate boiling over in the press.
Speaking after the Masters victory, O’Sullivan said: "He needs to sort his f****** life out. I'm not going to skirt around it any more, tip-toeing on eggshells around someone like that. He's a f****** nightmare.
"Playing snooker against someone like that is a nightmare. He's not a nice person. It's not a nice vibe he leaves around the table.
"I've said my piece, I don't give a s***. I've said it now, done. You know what he's like, everybody knows what he's like.
"He's got issues. F****** why has he got issues with me? I'm not having it."
He then stuck his middle finger up and walked out of his press conference.
Carter himself also hit back by telling ITV4: "Ronnie is entitled to his opinion. I just said what it is and how it was and I talk facts. It is as simple as that."
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Asked whether he was angry at O'Sullivan's comments, he said: "Angry about what? It makes no difference to me what he says. He says different things on different days. I don't think he even knows what is going to come out of his mouth at certain times.
"I actually feel a bit sorry for him. I don't think he is that well, mentally. So we move forward and we go again this week."
Matchroom Sport president Barry Hearn joined talkSPORT on Wednesday morning to discuss the feud and was admittedly fed up with it all.
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“It’s all too much,” he told Alan Brazil and Ally McCoist. “What we’re talking about here is a horrible dispute between two players, which is subject to a World Snooker review.
“All I want to do is get this sport working together instead of reading constant complaints and arguments.
“The first thing I read was about how the Alexandra Palace was a terrible venue, it was dirty. Ronnie and his dad were moaning about something.
“I thought ‘I’ve just had 17 of the most wonderful days of my life at Alexandra Palace with 96 players, nearly 100,000 fans. Not one complaint’.
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“That’s a sport that’s growing so fast, establishing new territories, and making money - mainly for the players but also for me.
“Why are these snooker players trying to, time and again, destroy what we’ve built up from nothing.
“10 or 12 years ago the sport was going bust. Why can’t we have everyone together, rather than you and I and about people snotting on the floor. Come on!”
O’Sullivan is now under investigation for his foul-mouthed rant, and Hearn added: “You take the bigger picture and this is going to involve looking at the disciplinaries and you know this is an ongoing saga.
“I suppose the papers have something to write about, but I want them to be writing about the positive side. I don’t see enough of that.
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“I tell everyone this is a danger. Don’t get complacent with what you’ve got, we’ve built something that has gone from strength to strength. We need to work together, not this nonsense.
“We’ve got it in a lot of sports, not just snooker. DO these guys realise how lucky they are? The man on the street would cut their arm off to have the opportunity, the money, the ability, the fame.
“What are we reading about? Bad language, obscene language in front of people, what does that do to the image of sport when we’re trying to export it around the world. On the other hand, Bahrain darts starts tomorrow. Luke Littler has given us the biggest figures we’ve ever seen. The sport is going in the right direction.
“I find it tedious to listen to this obscene rant. Ronnie has just achieved one of the greatest achievements of his career. Eight Masters, the man is a phenomenon on the table.”
O'Sullivan and Carter are now on course to meet each other again in the World Grand Prix final.
