Derek Hough: ‘DWTS’ Star Claims Fourth Place Is Better Than Second

Dancing with the Stars pro Derek Hough believes that winning fourth place in the competition is a lot better than second or third.

Derek Hough (like each of the other DWTS stars) always has his eyes on winning first place. Since he has won first place a record-setting five times in the past, it is obvious that the 29-year-old clearly feels strongly about taking the Mirrorball Trophy home.

In a recent post-show interview with People, Derek Hough actually explained why he believes that the next best thing after a first-place win is fourth place.

Numerically, that might not make very much sense to the average person. If you can’t win first place, most people would settle for second or third instead of being happy to walk away with fourth place. However, Derek Hough clearly has a very different way of looking at it.

“We joked about this today… The best place to come in is fourth or first. Second or third are no bueno, because you’ve got to put all that extra work in … and then you go, ‘Arghhhhh!'”

Even though Derek Hough made DWTS history with his five first-place wins, he’s had his share of second, third and also fourth place wins as well. Therefore, many people might view him as an expert on this topic — especially since quite a few of the other professional dancers on the show do not even come close to his overall record.

Perhaps Derek Hough was just expressing his love and appreciation for fourth place since he and YouTube star Bethany Mota experienced it together this season. Even if he is serious, at least his theory somewhat defeats the Ricky Bobby philosophy that “if you’re not first, you’re last.”

Either way, both Derek Hough and Bethany Mota still have a lot to celebrate with their fourth-place win — especially when you take into consideration the many other contestants that have been forced to leave the competition before them this season.

In an interview with Us Weekly, Bethany opened up about some of the things that she will personally take away from the experience.

“I’ve learned to take more risks. Going into this competition I was really scared because it’s a live show and I’m not used to doing that stuff. Everything I’ve been doing for years, it’s all pre-filmed, and if I make a mistake I can edit it out. But this is different.”

Whether he realizes it or not, Derek Hough played a major role in making that happen for the viral video star. Perhaps that should be his new reason for loving fourth place so much. What do you think?

[Image Credit: Latin Post]