Why Bobby Bones Thinks He “Cheated” on DWTS Before Winning Season 27

Watch:Bobby Bones Responds to Julianne Hough Saying She Disagreed With His DWTS Win

Bobby Bones is reflecting on his last waltz.

Nearly seven years after the radio host and partner Sharna Burgess won season 27 of Dancing With the Stars in 2018, he shared the hidden strategy he used to help him on the ballroom floor.

“I cheated, in the way of, they give you a limited amount of time with your partner,” Bobby explained in the Sept. 15 episode of Jason Tartick’s Trading Secrets podcast. “Like, four hours a day, they say. So we would do our four, I would record the session and then go rent a studio and train by myself. I illegally spent time over because I was so far behind everybody else.”

Indeed, the 45-year-old (real name Bobby Estell) was criticized for his lack of dancing skills at the time. And while he originally “never wanted to do the show,” Bobby alleged that higher ups at American Idol—on which he served as a mentor from 2018 to 2021—influenced him to join the competition series.

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Meet the Dancing With the Stars Season 27 Cast

“They said, ‘Hey, go and do Dancing With the Stars to promote American Idol,’” he recalled of the conversation. “I was like, ‘OK, but I’ve never danced.’ They were like, ‘It’s fine. Nobody wins that show that’s never danced and you’ll be off in four weeks.’”

But in a surprising turn of events, the Breaking Bobby Bones star—who’s married to chef Caitlin Parker—stayed in the competition for 10 weeks, ultimately securing the Mirrorball trophy on the show’s final episode. The win was polarizing at the time, as he and Burgess earned low-to-middle scores throughout the entire season.

ABC

However, Bobby wasn’t embarrassed by their mid scores at the time. In fact, he believed their placement was a reminder of how dedicated he was to ace their routines.

“I don’t do anything halfway,” he continued. “And that show, they don’t tell you how you’re actually doing. All you know is you’re surviving. I was a fish out of water. I had no idea what I was doing.”

Bobby’s revelation comes months after he reacted to Julianne Hough’s criticism of his performance on the show. Last August, the DWTS cohost told Andy Cohen that she “strongly disagreed” with his win, and Bobby shared his lighthearted thoughts shortly after.

“Julianne Hough can get no slander from me,” he said in an Instagram video at the time. “I was the worst dancer. I take pride in that. Now, I tried as hard as anybody in the history of the show, but I can’t dance now. I couldn’t dance then.”

Before DWTS begins a new season Sept. 16, keep reading to meet the celeb cast…

Disney

Baron Davis

Partnered with Britt Stewart

Disney

Jennifer Affleck

Partnered with Jan Ravnik

Disney

Alix Earle

Partnered with Valentin Chmerkovski

Disney

Dylan Efron