Former Strictly Come Dancing professional Oti Mabuse has criticised new pro Maddie Ingoldsby, saying she is "not listening" to the judges and warning that her approach "is just not going to work out" with partner Cach Mercer.
The couple finished at the bottom of the leaderboard on Saturday night and narrowly avoided elimination after Shirley Ballas saved them over Bethany Antonia and Nancy Xu. Fans have blamed Maddie's choreography for the low scores, and judge Craig Revel Horwood criticised her posture and the amount of time the pair spent in hold.
Oti's warning on her podcast
Oti, 36, shared her thoughts on her podcast with husband Marius Iepure, 44, saying she "feels sorry" for the UK National Ballroom Champion. "I feel sorry for Maddie at this point because I don't feel like she's being guided properly," she explained. "I feel like the ideas that she's trying to create are very much Dancing With The Stars coded. And this is not Dancing With The Stars and it's just not going to work out."
She added: "Now she's done so many ballroom dances, she's not listening. So she's like, 'I'm going to do whatever I want.' And she's going to get low scores." Marius interjected that he thought it was a "very modern routine" and that he "loved it".
Judges and fan reaction
Oti, the sister of Strictly judge Motsi, continued: "But you know you have four people who don't want a modern routine - well, two. But you know this at this point. And she's working with other people who work on the show who know this as well."
She went on: "So I just don't understand why someone can't just go, 'Maddie, we understand that you're brilliant, we understand that you're trying to do something different. It's a piece of art that you've created.' I'm Queen of the break-up romance dances, but you also need to get your celeb high scores and keep them out of the dance-off."
Oti's comments drew agreement from her followers, with former Strictly pro Gorka Marquez liking the video. One fan wrote: "I totally agree. Maddie should be ensuring that Cache nails the technique. That is the priority. The judges will not be wowed by fancy moves if the basics are not in place. She was told this in week 1, yet she continues to ignore this. As a viewer, I find it irritating that no improvements have been made on that front. We see the same issues every week and as the professional, she should know better."
However, another disagreed, writing: "Very unfair of Oti. The routine was lovely and it was the footwork that put Cach in the dance off. Maddie is very young and a beautiful dancer and this week it wasn't her fault at all."
