Robert Irwin is backing Maura Higgins to win Dancing with the Stars Season 35, saying the early cast reveal may have given her the kind of momentum he once had on the show. Irwin, who won last season’s Mirrorball Trophy with pro partner Witney Carson, said Higgins reminded him of his own run after she was introduced as one of the first celebrities in the new lineup.
“I walked her out [to announce the season in April] and she was like, ‘I feel like this is a good omen. Like, this was you last year, you were the first announced,'” Irwin said. “Yeah, I think the luck is on your side,” he added. “We’ve got to keep the tradition going.”
The comments come as Dancing with the Stars Season 35 builds toward its fall premiere on ABC and Disney+, with the cast still not complete. Higgins and Ciara Miller were the first two celebrities unveiled during Hulu’s Get Real House event on April 22, and the remaining stars and pro partners will be announced later. For Irwin, who knows what it means to carry the weight of an early spotlight, the timing alone makes Higgins a name to watch.
That makes his endorsement more than a friendly nod. Irwin is not just a former contestant; he is the reigning Mirrorball winner, and he will be back on ABC this summer as host of the spinoff Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro, which debuts July 13. His remarks also tie Higgins’s launch into the season to the pattern that worked for him last year, when being the first announced contestant became part of the story around his eventual victory.
The open question now is whether Higgins can turn that early buzz into a run that lasts once the season begins. Irwin clearly thinks she can, and in a competition built on chemistry, timing and momentum, that kind of public backing from a recent champion carries real weight.
