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Robert Irwin received a special surprise from actress and former mirror ball champion Xochitl Gomez ahead of the Dancing with the Stars finale.
Ahead of Robert’s final performance on the Season 34 finale, he received support from his sister and DWTS Season 21 winner Bindi Irwin, their mother Terry, and former DWTS Season 32 champion Xochitl.
Hours before Robert, 21, took the stage, a photo shared by TMZ showed Xochitl, 19, greeting him outside his trailer with a smile and a large bouquet of flowers.
The Avengers actress, who won Season 32 of DWTS with partner Val Chmerkovskiy in 2023, supported Robert behind the scenes and watched him practice for his final freestyle.
Disney/Eric McCandless
The two’s bond came after Xochitl joined Robert for the series’ 20th birthday celebration during the November 11 broadcast. During the episode, the pair paired up in a relay dance round and performed a jive to Olly Murs’ ‘Dance with Me Tonight.’
After the dance, Derek Hough commented on their chemistry and his partner Witney Carson gave a knowing look, leading fans to speculate that a romance was brewing.
Earlier in the season, Whitney revealed that she was flooded with DMs from fans who wanted to go on a date with Robert.
“Girls, I love you, thank you for somehow applying through my email and flooding me with DMs,” the dance pro wrote on her Instagram Story at the time. “If I could line you all up with Robert, I would because you’re all 10 out of 10 perfect cuties.”
Carson continued, “I can’t respond because we’re dancing through life right now,” and joked, “Robert on The Bachelor?! This is too stressful for me to handle (lol)!”
Disney/Eric McCandless
That same month, Robert opened up to People about what he was looking for in a relationship.
“My mom and dad met when she was an American tourist in Australia, and that’s how my sister met her husband,” she said of her late father Steve, her mother, and Bindi and her husband Chandler Powell. “I’ve been saying this for a long time, when will it happen?!”
“I’m still waiting for it,” he added. “Those American tourists are having a hard time lining up.”
But months after the show premiered, Robert gave an interview to The New York Times on Nov. 23 about what it’s like to be in the public eye.
“Oh my god, it’s so hard to navigate,” he admitted, especially when “whatever you do is reflected on TikTok the next day.”
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Dancing with the Stars Season 34 is available to stream on Hulu and Disney+.
