MyUSTINET News: Kristi Yamaguchi Wins 'Dancing With The Stars'

Newsday, Melville, N.Y. Please, please, please: Was anyone surprised with last night's "Dancing With the Stars" mother of all anti-climaxes? Did anyone think Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas weren't going to win? That a 255-pound defensive end (and a fine one at that) from a sad team had a chance to topple Kristi "The Velvet Hammer" Yamaguchi?

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Ahhhh ... well ... yeah. This is "Dancing With the Stars", which has toppled female finalists with a weary and franchise-threatening predictability since the first season. But with that rep on the judges' minds (perhaps), the show wasn't in the mood for meeting expectations -- however wrongheaded the end result may have been on occasion. They awarded Yamaguchi/Ballas a virtually unbeatable point total over the final two nights -- a perfect 90 -- which meant that Jason Taylor and Edyta Sliwinska would need an overwhelming audience total to pull ahead. (Judges' votes count for half the total.)

They didn't get it. Yamaguchi/Ballas were unbeatable with the judges in their corner, and as host Tom Bergeron noted, they got the highest judge total ever for a "DWTS" team in six seasons. Meanwhile, in third place, Cristian de la Fuente and Cheryl Burke, went out early last night. That was a bit of a surprise because de la Fuente injured his arm a few weeks ago, though he continued to dance, earning him a few sympathy votes as well as votes from fans grateful for a little extra drama in a season that otherwise featured little.

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