November 26, 2025 by Katie Plue (‘27)
Robert Irwin wins the Mirrorball trophy on Dancing with the Stars with his partner Witney Carson and has traversed waters deeper than those that hold his pet alligators.
Every Tuesday night at 8:00 since September 16th, fans nationwide have sat down to watch their favorite stars compete for the Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy. The TV show Dancing with the Stars has been aired since 2005, with 34 seasons and an ever-growing fanbase. This week marked the end of season 34, with wildlife conservationist, and son of Steve Irwin, taking home first place.
Robert Irwin was the first contestant of this season announced to the public in April, as they announced a new season starting in September.
In his first performance, he blew the audience, and the judges, away with his electric jive to the fitting song “Born to Be Wild” by Stappenwolf. Judge and former pro dancer on the show Derek Hough said “that was probably the best first dance I’ve ever seen on this show.” The dance overall was a 15/20 based on the judges scores.
While entering this competition with a bang, Robert had hit a mental low coming into the fifth week of the season. His week five dedication night performance was dedicated to his mother, and the episode got more emotional when he mentioned the death of his father and how it has affected them. Robert said that night, “I’ve never been able to capture the feeling of gratitude that I feel for her, and at every milestone when I just wish that my dad was there.” The gesture evoked tears from each of the judges and his dance partner Witney Carson.
He has also faced some physical challenges as well. In his video package this week, before his first dance of the finale, he explained how he had been having intense pain in his ribs, similar to contestant Elaine Hendrix, who had to miss a night after tweaking her rib and being taken to the hospital. Robert’s pain was enough to have his partner Witney consider modifying some of the choreography to avoid the injury getting any worse. Despite this, he still danced all three dances of the night, achieving perfect scores for both the “Instant Dance” and the “Freestyle” segments of the night.
Luckily, Robert had a group of supporters and people who he considered family there to boost him up and keep him motivated through the physical obstacle. Partners Robert and Witney created an unbreakable bond from their season together, mentioning multiple times how important their friendship has been to both of them. Witney said that she sees him as a new younger brother and has expressed her love for him, saying how her “motherly instincts come in,” when it comes to Robert. Irwin has even told Witney that the Australia Zoo had named a baby wallaby after her to honor their time together on the show.
After bringing the ballroom to tears and wowing the judges and fans week after week, Robert and Witney made it to the finale, where Robert planned to step into big shoes and walk the legacy of his older sister, Bindi Irwin, who had won the Mirrorball trophy on season 21 with now judge Derek Hough as her partner. He performed three dances, one a quickstep, then an “instant dance” cha-cha, and finally the freestyle.
Alongside finalists Alix Earle, Elaine Hendrix, Dylan Efron, and Jordan Chiles, Irwin landed in the final two against fellow star Alix Earle. With intense competition and an extremely talented and successful cast, Robert Irwin and his pro Witney Carson were announced as the season 34 winners of the Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy.