- Chris Wakelin became a viral sensation after his performance at the British Championships
- A video of a 32-year-old potting a ball has been viewed more than five million times
Snooker player Chris Wakelin joked he should get a ‘sponsor logo on his a***’ for next season after becoming an unlikely sex icon on social media.
Following his first-round victory over Matthew Selt at the British Championship last Monday, a video of the 32-year-old stretching across the table to pocket a ball was widely circulated on TikTok.
The clip was accompanied by lyrics from Sabrina Carpenter’s raunchy song “Juno,” in which she says the line, “Have you ever tried this one?” The verse covers various sexual positions she takes during her nightly concerts.
‘I was in the pub with my mate. Have a few beers.’ Wakelin said The sun. “This video came through on my phone. I’m kind of a sex icon on TikTok – with my a* in the air.
“I thought, um, that wasn’t the plan this week, not how I expected to make headlines. Thank you to whoever posted it. Thank you very much. It was pretty cool. Being in my 30s, I’m not really the right age to understand TikTok. So it took me a good ten minutes to figure out what was actually going on.
‘I had never heard this song before. I had never heard of Sabrina Carpenter. I know who she is now!’
Chris Wakelin, 32, has become a viral sensation after his performance at the British Championships
A video of Wakelin pocketing a ball while stretching across the table has been viewed more than five million times on TikTok
The 32-year-old crashed out of the British Championship in the second round after defeat to Kyren Wilson
Ahead of his 6-2 second-round loss to Kyren Wilson on Thursday, Wakelin was hilariously introduced by MC Rob Walker as a “social media sensation” because his “standout gymnastics move across the table had gone viral.”
Wakelin’s video has been viewed more than five million times on the social media platform. The world number 15 lost in the final of the International Championship last month, missing out on the £175,000 prize.
At the Barbican in York, world number 1 Judd Trump added a second British Championship trophy to his cabinet and more than £1 million to his bank balance. He secured his second British crown – 13 years after his first – by beating 45-year-old qualifier Barry Hawkins 10-8 in a hard-fought final.
Trump, 35, has now also claimed 30 ranking titles in his career, putting him just one behind John Higgins on the all-time list, six behind Stephen Hendry and 11 behind record holder Ronnie O’Sullivan.