Born in Valletta, on the 22nd September 1965, Drago started playing snooker at a very early age at the Anglo-Maltese Club. His great talent was soon apparent and by 1980 he had already won the Malta Boys Championship. In 1981 he won the Second Division Championship and two years later, the Malta Championship. During this period, the sport was enjoying great popularity in Malta. The exploits of World Amateur Champion, Paul Mifsud, captured the imagination of all the Maltese. Dragos talent was recognised by one and all and he was considered as a worthy successor to Mifsud. In 1984 Drago was approached by snooker promoter Karmenu Mifsud to turn professional. He agreed, but before taking the plunge, he wanted to have one go at the World Amateur Championship. Drago was one of the favourites to win this prestigious title, but having only one chance imposed great pressure on him and he succumbed to it. Drago settled down in England and before long he was one of the 800-odd professionals of the World Snooker Circuit. He was an instant success. The ‘Star of Malta’ is one of Tony’s many nicknames, another is ‘The Tornado’, a nickname he earned because of his speed on the cue, which over the years has made an indelible mark on snooker and its record books.
In 1988 he recorded the fastest ever frame victory in just three minutes, against Danny Fowler and in 1991 he reached the finals of the MITA and Master Tournaments. In 1993 he recorded a 5-0 victory over Sean Lanigan in just 34 minutes and in the 1995 UK Championship he made a century break in 210 seconds, against John Higgins, before winning the China Tournament in 1996. In that same year Drago won the Sportsman of the Year, awarded by the Ghaqda Kittieba ía’ l-Isports. These and other successes have earned him the 9th ranking in the World Circuit.
Off the table, Tony counts tennis and football amongst his interests and claims he would have liked to be a tennis player if he had not been a snooker professional.