On december 9, 2018, Ronnie won his seventh UK Championship title, beating Mark Allen in the very high quality final. Ronnie was the defending Champion. This was the first time since Stephen Hendry in 1996, that someone defended the UK Championship title successfully.

In doing that, Ronnie broke several records. Nobody has more than seven UK titles to their CV, Steve Davis comes second with six. It also brought Ronnie’s tally of “Triple Crown Events” to nineteen, one better than Stephen Hendry.

Ronnie turned forty three during the championship. He won this title for the first time in 1993, still only seventeen, beating Stephen Hendry by 10-6 in the final. Twenty five years later he lifted the trophy for the seventh time, still the best. His longevity is exceptional.

Ronnie was understandably emotional and overjoyed. He celebrated with the fans, mixing with the crowd for several minutes. The atmosphere at the York Barbican was magnificent.

Here is the story of the match (source cuetracker.net):

and the action …

Ronnie’s emotion and joy during the trophy ceremony was wonderful to watch. It clearly showed how much he actually cares. And this was obvious in his post-match interviews, both with Hazel Irvine and with Eurosport.

Here is the story in pictures, some shared on social media, most courtesy of Tai Chengzhe. Thank you Tai! 

The reactions in the media, as well as from fellow professionals were overwhelming.

Here are Jimmy White and Alan McManus, on the next day, discussing Ronnie’s status in the game. This video contains Ronnie’s interview with Eurosport right after his win.

and this is the one between Neal Foulds and Jimmy White right after the match