"They were not given a chance to win": Dancing with the Stars' Maks Chmerkovskiy on Val and Alix Earl finishing in second place

Dancing with the Stars alum Maks Chmerkovskiy recently shared his thoughts on the November 26, 2025, finale of the ABC show and where the five finalists finished as season 34 concluded. 

In the November 28 episode of The Penthouse with Peta, Maks shared his honest opinion on his brother, Val Chmerkovskiy, and his dance partner, Alix Earle, finishing in second place, saying:

“My only thing was that Alix and Val were never winning it on week one. When the lineup and the first thing and everybody, they were not given a chance to win. They were given a chance [to] probably be far [in the competition].”

Val and Alix finished the competition in second place, while Robert Irwin and Witney Carson finished at the top of the leaderboard. 

Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa finished in third, Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach in fourth, and Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten in fifth. 

According to Maks, the outcome, with Robert taking home the Mirrorball Trophy, was predictable because, to him, Robert had always been the clear frontrunner from the start of the season. 

Maks stated that the only way Alix and Val could have defeated Robert and Witney was if the latter couple made a “glorious disaster” in the finale. 

“It was always Robert’s show to lose”: Dancing with the Stars’ Maks Chmerkovskiy on Robert winning the title

The conversation came to a head when Maks’ wife, Peta, mentioned that at one point she wondered if Alix and Val would win the show since their finale performances had been “so spectacular and so perfect.”

Alix and Val earned perfect scores for all three performances during their final night in the ballroom. 

However, Maks felt otherwise, pointing out that they never had the chance to emerge victorious. 

“Generally speaking, it was Robert’s show to lose, right?” he said. 

Maks added that the only way Alix and Val could have surpassed Robert and Witney was if the latter duo made a mistake they could not recover from. 

However, Peta opined that Robert still would have won, given how he dominated the series from the beginning. 

Maks agreed, pointing out that Val and Alix lost despite having a “perfect night” with three perfect scores. 

Alix and Val earned their first 30 for their samba routine in the Judges’ Choice Round. Their second perfect score came during the Instant Dance Challenge, where they performed to Where Is My Husband? By Raye. 

Their third act, which got a complete 30, was a Freestyle dance to Maneater by Nelly Furtado and Sports Car by Tate McRae.

At the end of the night, Alix and Val were at the top of the leaderboard with 90 points out of 90, whereas Robert and Witney were in second with 89 points. 

However, Maks stated that although “predictable,” Robert deserved to win Dancing with the Stars, as did Alix and Val. 

“I feel like it could have gone either way. And I feel like the general population felt like that, too,” Peta added. 

Both Maks and Peta noted that Robert never let his performances slip and competed for the top spot, whereas the other contestants had their moments during their time on Dancing with the Stars. 

What did Alix Earle say about the Dancing with the Stars results?

In an exclusive interview with E! News, published on November 26, 2025, Alix confessed that she had no resentment about the outcome. 

“It was the best night ever, and it couldn’t have gone any better,” she said.

She further added that she was grateful for the opportunity, as being able to dance had been “so fulfilling and therapeutic.”

Alix was equally grateful to Val, whom she described as a “good best friend,” who motivated her along the way. 

Stay tuned for more updates.