Alfonso Ribeiro thinks his very first dance on “Dancing With the Stars” deserved a perfect score from the judges.
In 2014, the former “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” star won the season 19 mirrorball trophy with pro partner Witney Carson. Speaking with TV Insider ahead of the 10-year anniversary of his win, Ribeiro made a stunning remark when reminiscing about his debut dance, a jive to the Cupid song “3-6-9.”
“Coming out the box, I got 9s across the board on my first dance ever, which was the highest first week score in the history of the show, still in the history of the show,” Ribeiro, 52, told the outlet. He then hinted that his dance deserved the highest score of 10s.
“I mean, you can’t give 10s [the] first week, but the dance itself, there was nothing wrong,” he added.
According to The Daily Mail, Riberio and Carson’s jive received a score of 36 out of 40 points from judges Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Julianne Hough. “You have the swagger of season 19,” Inaba told Ribeiro at the time. “You just raised the stakes.”
It wasn’t until Week 4 and Ribeiro’s “Most Memorable Year” dance to the Tom Jones song “It’s Not Unusual” that he got his first perfect score.
Alfonso Ribiero Wanted to Compete on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ For A Long Time
In 2014, Ribeiro told E! News it had long been his dream to compete on “Dancing With the Stars.” “I’ve been wanting to do the show from the beginning,” he said. “It was never my choice not to be on the how, it was their choice not to have me.”
Following his big win, Ribeiro told reporters his casting on the show was worth the long wait. “It’s been an amazing ride,” he said in 2014, per The Atlantic-Constitution Journal. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do for so many years. Ultimately, it was worth it. It wasn’t easy. If it was, everyone would do it!”
In the 2024 interview with TV Insider, Ribeiro explained that he was a “huge” fan of “Dancing With the Stars” before finally getting cast for season 19.
“[I] always watched, would go watch friends on the show, and then be in the audience,” he told the outlet. “I just wanted to do the show. So that many years wanting to do [it] and then finally getting on, that was a very special moment.”
Alfonso Ribiero Segued to the Role of Full-Time DWTS Host in 2023
In 2023, another dream came true when Ribeiro was named the host for “Dancing With the Stars” following the exit of then-host Tyra Banks. The full-time role came after Riberio served as Bank’s co-host for one season prior.
At the time he was named co-host, Ribeiro told “Good Morning America” it felt like a full-circle moment for him. “Obviously I’ve been a big fan of the show from the very beginning and to now be a co-host on the show and be back in the ballroom with all of my friends — they feel like family,” he said in the 2022 interview.
“My goal is to bring the fun and the love and the energy and the laughter back to the ballroom,” Ribeiro said at the time.
