Witney Carson already knows who wins the first season of Dancing With the Stars: The Next Pro, and while she isn’t revealing the name, she has dropped a major clue about how she feels about the result: she believes the winner earned it.
The new Dancing With the Stars spinoff was filmed months before viewers began watching it this summer, meaning Carson and others involved with the production already know how the competition ends. For fans watching week by week, however, the identity of the dancer who earns the coveted place on the main show remains a closely guarded secret.
Carson became closely involved with the competition during its later stages, serving as a guest mentor and judge while the remaining dancers faced one of their most revealing challenges yet.
That experience gave the reigning DWTS champion an opportunity to see something viewers don’t always get from a finished performance: exactly how these dancers handle the pressure of teaching someone else.
Being a professional on Dancing With the Stars, Carson explained, requires much more than simply being an exceptional dancer. Pros have to choreograph routines, teach celebrities with vastly different levels of experience, manage personalities and somehow make their partners look confident when millions of people are watching.
Carson knows that responsibility particularly well. She has spent years as a professional on the main series and most recently won Season 34 with Robert Irwin, giving her a particularly informed perspective when evaluating someone hoping to earn the same job.
After seeing the contestants work, Carson admitted she came away impressed by just how difficult their journey had been.
And when asked about the person who ultimately wins the competition, she didn’t hesitate to praise the result.
While carefully avoiding revealing the winner’s identity, Carson said she felt the eventual champion “really deserved it” and explained that she was impressed by what the dancers had been required to overcome throughout the process.
That comment has suddenly made the remaining episodes much more interesting.
Instead of simply wondering who performs the flashiest routines, viewers now have another clue to consider. Carson’s comments suggest the winner may be someone whose overall growth, teaching ability and response to difficult challenges ultimately separates them from the competition.
The stakes are also unusually high because the prize isn’t simply a trophy.
The Next Pro was created to find a dancer capable of joining the professional lineup of the flagship Dancing With the Stars. The winner therefore receives an opportunity that could completely transform their career.
That also explains why the challenges have tested much more than ballroom technique.
Throughout the competition, contestants have been forced to demonstrate chemistry, choreography, leadership and their ability to communicate with partners—skills that become essential when a DWTS pro is paired with a celebrity who may have little or no dance experience.
Carson said the series gave her an even greater appreciation for what professional dancers endure behind the scenes. Viewers normally see the polished routines on television, but the new competition exposes more of the preparation and sacrifice required before those performances ever reach the ballroom.
The competition has already produced several unpredictable moments, including emotional eliminations and performances that dramatically changed the judges’ opinions of certain dancers.
And the field continues to narrow as the finale approaches.
Carson will also have a special connection to the finale itself. She is set to reunite with Robert Irwin, her Season 34 championship partner, with the two appearing together as the spinoff moves toward revealing its first winner.
Meanwhile, Carson already has her own next DWTS challenge waiting. She has been confirmed to return for Season 35, where she will partner with Jimmy Kimmel Live! personality Guillermo Rodriguez.
But before that season begins, viewers still have one major mystery to solve.
Carson knows exactly which aspiring dancer survives the entire competition and earns the opportunity they have all been fighting for. She isn’t giving away the name—but her reaction makes one promise about the finale particularly intriguing.
According to someone who watched the journey unfold from much closer than viewers did, the person standing at the end didn’t simply win—they deserved to be there.
