Dancing with the Stars heartbreak: Robert Irwin reacts to Danielle Fishel’s send-off

The Dancing With the Stars ballroom witnessed one of its most emotional eliminations of the season as Danielle Fishel and her partner, Pasha Pashkov, were sent home after Week 8’s performances.

The shock was felt throughout the cast, but it hit one contestant harder than most: Robert Irwin.

The wildlife conservationist and TV host opened up after the episode, calling Fishel’s exit “absolutely devastating” and describing her as one of his closest friends from the show.

Dancing With the Stars: Emotional farewell shakes the Ballroom

Tuesday night’s Dancing With the Stars episode, themed around the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, ended on an unexpectedly somber note.

Fishel and Pashkov delivered a contemporary routine to Aerosmith’s Dream On, earning 34 out of 40 from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, Derek Hough, and guest judge Flavor Flav.

Despite strong praise and the season’s earlier perfect score for Team Chicago, Fishel’s journey came to an end.

Following the elimination, Robert Irwin, who remains in the competition with professional partner Witney Carson, shared his emotional reaction with US Weekly to losing what he called one of his most meaningful friendships on the show.

“Absolutely gutted. Absolutely devastated,” he said. “Amongst the contestants here on Dancing With the Stars, she’s the person I think I’ve grown closest to. I consider her one of my best friends in this experience, and she is the most authentic, genuine, incredible human being that leads with this sense of positivity.”

Irwin continued,

“She walks in the room and everybody is just lifted up. And the fact that she won’t be in the ballroom anymore, I am gutted, but I think she has pumped out so much positivity through our TV screens. I mean, she should be so proud of herself.”

The emotional weight of Fishel’s exit was echoed by others in the cast, including Carson, who described her as “such a class act.”

“Every time I go into makeup or hair, her genuine smile just makes me feel better. She’s got this warmth of mother protectiveness, and it was such a pleasure getting to know her,” Carson said. “We’re going to miss her so much.”

Robert Irwin’s tribute and what’s next

For Irwin, Fishel’s departure underscored how close the Dancing With the Stars cast has become this season. He explained in a post-show interview.

“This show, it brings together people from such different walks of life. To have someone like Danielle — someone who’s just constantly lifting everyone up — it’s a huge loss for the energy of the room.”

Looking ahead, Irwin and Carson will return next week for the show’s 20th birthday celebration episode.

Though details of their next performance remain under wraps, Carson teased that it will be “completely different” from anything they’ve done so far. 

“We’re going to have to start again from the bottom and work our way up,” she said. “Carrie Ann said it’s a good time to have this momentum, so we’re going to keep pushing and do more challenging things.”

Irwin added that their upcoming number will carry a deeply personal tone.

“It’s one that I think is hopefully going to resonate with a lot of people,” he shared. “It’s a very personal story. It’s going to be a hard story to tell, but a story that I think is impossible to tell any other way. I mean, to be able to fully and completely tell this story of loss and legacy… It’ll be really beautiful.”

As Dancing With the Stars Season 34 progresses, Fishel’s send-off stands out as one of the most heartfelt moments yet — not just because of her performance, but because of how deeply she connected with her fellow contestants.

Stay tuned for more updates.