This ‘DWTS’ star has come painfully close to winning many times — but has only won once
Noone knows the pain of losing the mirrorball trophy better than ‘DWTS’ pro Witney Carson. It’s one thing to lose in the middle of the competition, but going home empty-handed after reaching the finale stings. Carson has experienced this several times! In Season 31, she and her partner, Wayne Brady, finished third. 2 seasons late, Carson came in third again with Frankie Muniz. In Season 27 and 28, she grabbed second place with Milo Manheim and Kel Mitchell respectively. The dancer did win the coveted trophy once, but it was 10 years ago with the show’s current co-host, Alfonso Ribeiro.
In an interview with CinemaBlend, Carson opened up about her unfortunate losing streak on ‘DWTS.’ “You know what, I've just accepted it. I've accepted that I'm maybe just second place forever,” she said with a laugh. She added, “Everybody is like, ‘I wanna win, I wanna win,’ and obviously I wanna win.” However, that’s not her first priority. “I feel like now in my career it's more about just creating very unique and amazing routines,” Carson added. On the show, her only focus is to do her job every week and have a 'good time' doing it.
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It’s been a decade since Carson has won the ‘DWTS’ title, but her focus has remained the same. Carson’s secret to paving her way to the finale is: “Pushing the boundaries of my celebrity and not necessarily worrying about the outcome.” Although she admitted that victory is never completely out of her mind, but it is the least of her worries. “I want to win and that would be amazing. But for me, it's just better to think about what I'm doing and just staying in the moment,” she explained.
Carson also competed in the show’s recently concluded 33rd season. She and her partner, the two-time Super Bowl champion, Danny Amendola, made it to the finale. No surprise. The duo performed a Viennese waltz to ‘Gravity’ by John Mayer and won over the judges. Before advancing to the finale, Amendola spoke about his journey in the show. “Each week, it feels like we're assigned the impossible,” he said in an episode, as reported by The Providence Journal. “And by the end of the week the impossible feels obtainable,” he added.
He also acknowledged that some people see him as the underdog of the competition and made his peace with it. He said, “I think it's fair that I'm seen as the underdog — I have no dance experience. I love that title because I get to prove people wrong.” Before their Waltz performance, Carson revealed that their routine had a storyline similar to their previous contemporary routine, which became a 'breakthrough' for the contestant. “So he's gonna have to dig even deeper and really perform the best of his ability,” Carson said at the time.
