Former DWTS Pro Predicts Season 33 Couple’s Sizzling Chemistry Will ‘Fade’
Former "Dancing With the Stars" pro dancer Cheryl Burke thinks the chemistry between season 33 partners Gleb Savchenko and Brooks Nader could soon fade.
In a September 2024 episode of her "Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans" podcast , the two-time mirrorball champion expressed concern that the red-hot pair could face challenges in the ballroom as the competition goes on.
Noting that the two have great chemistry, Burke predicted that the 27-year-old model and the 40-year-old pro dancer's "honeymoon" phase would end.
"Think about the eight hours, seven days a week," she said. "There's gonna be a time where they're just so tired of each other and they've already seen each other naked," she speculated. "So, like that's the thing, like when you each other naked already and like you've seen it all and you're like, there's no like exciting element, and you'll see it in their dancing as well. Chemistry will slowly fade."
Savchenko and Nader have been openly flirty during their partnership on DWTS, and multiple PDA moments have been posted online. They regularly post flirty TikToks as well.
"That will be a theme throughout the season," Nader admitted to Us Weekly in an interview. "But it's a huge bonus to actually really be into your partner. You have to be with this person sweaty and on top of them all day for five hours. Every day — not just show day. So, it's kind of nice that you like each other."
Cheryl Burke Said There's No Fantasy Left
Days after a backstage video of Nader and Savchenko's PDA was leaked on social media, Burke said the showmance was not going to do them "any favors" in the competition. "When you start to break the boundary off the dance floor, you then create, the respect is just not there anymore," she explained.
She noted that Nader's first dances with Savchenko were good, but predicted it was "going to be hard if she has a challenging dance."
"Actually, her quick step was good, and I was happy to see that because I expected it to be a mess, Because when you start to be in all of that, you know, situation that they're in, you tend to like not rehearse as hard obviously," Burke explained. "But she did good. She has some dance background. But when she actually has to do a dance that she's not good in, that's going to be the challenge. And also, the honeymoon phase is going to fade soon. It all fades like around week three."
Burke also said the two are "screwed now" because their flirty behavior has become the focus of their partnership. "It is a competition and people want to see you take it seriously," Burke said. "Now that Brooks and Gleb gave it all away, there's nothing. There's nothing to fantasize about anymore, because it's real."
In September, Savchenko and Nader told TMZ they were not dating. But since that time, the PDA has continued. In late September and early October, The U.S. Sun posted photos of the two kissing outside of the DWTS studios and after a Saturday night date in Beverly Hills.
Brooks Nader Said She Wants People to Take Her Seriously on the Dance Floor
Nader has acknowledged that she likes to kiss Savchenko. "Who wouldn't want to make out with Gleb?" she said to Extra , before clarifying, "We're a dance couple for now. We're not in a relationship."
She described Savchenko as "an amazing teacher" who wants her to have "a great experience with 'Dancing with the Stars.'"
"He's very focused on that," Nader said of the Russian American pro dancer. "I really want people to take me seriously as a dancer because I'm actually working really hard to learn the routines. So, I want people to focus on that too."
