Robert Irwin may be chasing a mirrorball trophy on Dancing With the Stars, but at home, he is already winning all 10s from one very loyal judge.
Over the weekend, the 21-year-old wildlife conservationist shared a video that melted hearts everywhere. In the clip, Robert is seen teaching his four-year-old niece, Grace, daughter of Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell, a playful little dance routine in the Irwin family living room. The makeshift ballroom featured spins, kicks, jumps, and hand-holding, with Uncle Robert laughing and cheering her on. When Grace looked up at him and asked, “Did I do it?” he smiled wide and said, “Yeah, that’s it.” By the end, Robert declared, “10s, all 10s. Everybody else can go home now, Grace has won.”
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Bindi, filming from behind the camera, could be heard laughing and shouting her approval. Grace pointed her legs in sync with Robert, nailing the tiny routine like she had been prepping for season 50 of DWTS. Robert even teased in his caption, “Grace is making sure my dance training continues when I get home. She is prepped and ready for season 50 of Dancing With the Stars. Seriously so grateful I have my family here supporting me on this DWTS journey.”
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That family support has been Robert’s anchor through this whirlwind season. After his week one premiere, which had him leaping off a car mid-jive in his signature khakis, Robert admitted that seeing his sister Bindi in the audience nearly broke him emotionally. “I can’t help but get emotional when I talk about my family because they are everything to me,” he told Extra. “This process is the most incredible whirlwind adrenaline rush. To have them there is everything.” He added that the real highlight was not even the standing ovation. It was the look on Grace’s face. “She looked at me and she was like, ‘Yes!’ And I’m like, if Grace is happy, I’ve won.”
The Irwin family’s bond has always been strong, carrying on the legacy of the late Steve Irwin. But moments like this show it is not just about conservation or fame. It is about simple joys like a little girl twirling in the living room with her uncle. Fans flooded the comments with everything from laughing emojis to heartfelt notes about how much they love seeing the Irwins keep family front and center.
Robert’s debut on the dance floor was praised as one of the best in DWTS history, with judge Derek Hough calling it “probably the best first dance I have ever seen on this show.” Now, as he continues to train with professional partner Witney Carson, his biggest rehearsal partner may just be a preschooler who already has the confidence of a champion.
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It is easy to forget in all the glitz of the ballroom that Robert is still the same kid who grew up at the Australia Zoo, bottle-feeding baby kangaroos and following his dad’s footsteps with crocodiles. Yet here he is, dancing on primetime TV and still making time to spin his niece around the living room floor.
And maybe that is what makes him so easy to root for. Winning a mirrorball trophy would be historic for the Irwins because his sister Bindi already claimed one in 2015. But for Robert, the victory is already happening at home, since in Grace’s eyes, he is not just the best dancer on TV. He is the best uncle in the world.
