If you're like most of America, you don't follow the Canadian racing cicuit. Heading into Dancing with the Stars Season 23, James Hinchcliffe stood, and this sounds hilarious now, in the shadow of Vanilla Ice.
Done laughing?
The celebrity that started out as a mystery has been consistently front and center since the actual dancing started, and his incredible development has created quite a lot of speculation that the lesser known racer from up North could win the whole thing.
There was very little drama throughout the course of DWTS 23 in the Hinchcliffe camp. Guess guys that are used to precision driving at 200mph don't have time for distractions - and Mr. Hinchcliffe carried that "business first" approach.
To achieve the level of effort Hinch displayed isn't the result of some cliche halftime speech from a sports movie. It comes from total buy in to his teacher. To trust, and eliminate any residual doubt, that everything from the concept to the execution was the best thing for him.
You don't give full effort to something you question deep down, and this guy's effort was top notch.
There are countless times where competitive dancers will see a version of their proposed choreography, laugh, realize that their coach was not joking, and still ask for a slightly less-difficult alternative.
Judging by the swath of challenging choreography, it didn't look like Hinch was pitching the 1B version of any choreography, and it made him a better dancer for it.
One of the first big turning points for Hinchcliffe's season had to be his "Most Memorable Year" episode. There he shared the story of his near fatal car crash, his miraculous recovery, all which made his dance ability seem like he won the Life Lottery.
If there was a way J. Hinch could have topped the positive public outpouring he received after the "Memorable Year" episode, who would have thought it would be after his teacher, of all people, went down with an injury, and he ends up delivering the viral hit Suicide Squad Waltz of the season on the Halloween Episode.
Teacher swapping aside, Hinchcliffe would win it all based on his versatility alone. From his WW2 inspired Jitterbug, his legitimately Latin Rumba, and dapper and sophisticated Foxtrot - the guy has shown that he's built for ballroom, suited for Latin, and he may need to make room for a dance trophy by the racing ones.
Our guess is that the Mirrorball will be, as is the custom, front and center.
| 31 Things Your Dance Teacher Wants to See You Do | |
| My Arthur Murray Story: From Kiev to Las Vegas | |
| 5 Steps to Dealing with Difficult Dance Partners | |
| |
|