Ronnie O’Sullivan has called nemesis Ali Carter “a f***ing disgrace” in an explosive expletive-laden rant after he stunned him to claim a record-extending eighth Masters crown. The age-defying Rocket, 48, showed his class once again as he fought back from 6-3 down to beat fellow Essex potter Carter 10-7 in Sunday night’s showcase final at London’s Ally Pally.
A bitter Carter branded a boisterous partisan crowd as “morons” after he let a maiden Masters crown frustratingly slip from his grasp. And in an astonishing tirade, O’Sullivan hit back after Carter also alleged he ‘snotted’ on the Masters floor.
“He needs to sort his f***ing life out,” slammed world No.1 O’Sullivan. “I’m not going to skirt around it anymore, tip-toeing on egg shells around someone like that. He’s a f***ing 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**t. I’ve said it now, done.
“You know what he’s like, everybody knows what he’s like. He’s got issues. F***ing why has he got issues with me? I’m not having it. I don’t care, grow some balls.
“I don’t give a f**k, I don’t give a f**k about any of these snooker players, any of them. The more he brings it on, the more I f***ing punish him every time. He’s just digging a grave for himself. I don’t give a f**k. That’s it, I’ve said my piece.”
O’Sullivan added: “He’s got beef with me. He’s got issues, he’s got to sort his life out, he’s got to see a counsellor or something. He’s got to deal with that because that’s no good. He’s got to sort it out, because I haven’t spoken to him for 20 years.
“I played with him when he was a kid and shared a lot of stuff with him. For him to come out and try to trash talk me like that, do you know what? He can have one of them [middle finger], he can sit on it as far as I’m concerned.”
There has been bad blood between O’Sullivan and Carter throughout their careers – and the simmering feud hit boiling point when they were infamously involved in an incident later coined ‘barge-gate’ at the 2018 World Championship in Sheffield.
O’Sullivan barged Carter in the ribs and snapped “that’s for being Mr Angry” at his opponent.
The pair exchanged words and Carter secured a shock win, one of few against O’Sullivan, widely regarded as the sport’s best-ever player.
The seven-time world champion is currently locked in a bitter disciplinary dispute with the game’s governing body for disparaging comments he made earlier this season and is likely to be fined for swearing in his final Masters press conference.
Tempers flared as Carter had an altercation with members of the crowd, who at times called out when he was on his shot, in scenes rarely seen in the sport.
A pumped-up Captain moaned: “There were a couple of things that happened out there that go unnoticed. Well, they don’t go unnoticed but anyone with an eyesight or a brain can see what’s going on. It’s disgusting quite frankly. No-one wants to say anything, do they? [Ronnie] snotting all over the floor and all that.
“I mean it’s outrageous behaviour from a top professional. If it gets swept under the carpet then for me, it’s not good. And there were some morons in the crowd. It’s unbelievable really. It is hard enough to beat him, but when you have people shouting on your shot and saying stupid things at important times. My head wanted to come off.”
