So, would you believe the odds makers in Las Vegas are already wagering on who will win Dancing With The Stars Season 14? Below is how the stars stack up from first to last place according to Vegas Odds On. Notice currently how they have William Levy in first place….and this is without even seeing him dance yet. As you can see, they have Martina in last place which I think is a mistake knowing how fierce she can be on a competitive level?
William Levy 4/1
Jaleel White 5/1
Donald Driver 5/1
Maria Menounos 11/2
Gladys Knight 15/2
Roshon Fegan 17/2
Katherine Jenkins 10/1
Sherri Shepherd 12/1
Melissa Gilbert 12/1
Jack Wagner 15/1
Gavin DeGraw 18/1
Martina Navratilova 20/1
The NY Daily has written up a good article on this subject. Check out the predictions from American Line and Wynn Las Vegas. I can understand William Levy to win, but Sherri Shepherd? 😯
“Last season, we correctly predicted J.R. Martinez as the favorite and eventual winner,” America’s Line President Ben Eckstein told the Daily News.
“This season, we’re gonna try another Latin star, William Levy. Known as the ‘Cuban Brad Pitt,’ Levy is gorgeous, he has a ‘special’ relationship with Jennifer Lopez, and with J-Lo as a mentor — remember she wa a former Fly Girl — how can he possibly lose?”
Easily, according to Wynn Las Vegas’ oddsmaker, the mirror ball trophy belongs to “The View” co-host Sherri Shepherd, a 5-1 favorite in their book.
Let’s get Heidi’s and Courtney’s thoughts on this and be sure to let us know what you think too in the comments section:
Courtney: No joke – I actually LOL’d at these preliminary odds 🙂 Why? Because these oddsmakers seem to be playing into a few stereotypes that likely aren’t going to be true of this season’s cast. Their biggest mistake: assuming that William will be the 2nd coming of Gilles. As I was discussing with someone yesterday, Gilles was a total fluke – a good-looking relative unknown who ended up having quite a bit of natural dance skill. While I don’t think William will be terrible, I also don’t think they should expect lightening to strike twice for Cheryl – she’s a great teacher, but she also just got incredibly lucky with Gilles. I think they may be overestimating Gladys – she is a legend, yes, but she’s also the oldest competitor this season, and she isn’t going to get by on votes alone – at least not in the long run. I think they’re overestimating Katherine as well – she may be young and a pretty good dancer, but it ain’t gonna mean squat if she doesn’t have any stateside voters behind her. I think they’re probably underestimating Roshon, who I expect to be the best dancer this season in terms of technique; I also think they’re underestimating Melissa & Sherri, who will likely have a good part of the viewing audience rooting for them. But to give you guys some perspective, here are the preliminary odds from season 13 & season 12 – and they’re even more laughable in retrospect. They initally had Kendra winning season 12 – she ended up placing 6th, and they had eventual winner Hines in 4th place. For season 13, it was even wackier – they predicted Elisabetta to win (she got sent home the 2nd week) and had JR way down in 9th place! They also had Carson, Kristin, & Chynna in 2nd, 3rd, & 4th place, respectively – so in short, they were wayyyyy off 🙂 Which is why I’m just kinda smiling & nodding with these odds…because I highly doubt they’re gonna hold up in the long run.
Heidi: There is another odds making site out there that has Maria at nearly even money to win. So there you go. These guys will make adjustments every single week until it appears they get it right…in week 10. Last season was just absolutely ridiculous. They had Ricki being the 3rd or 4th person eliminated. Of course, if Sherri has been practicing with Val for months, then she really could win. 🙂 This is wacky – they should pay US to determine the real odds. This site gives it to Martina, with Maria being in second place and Katherine at 25 to 1, William at 10 to 1. This site has William at 25 to 1, Martina at 18 to 1, Maria at 3 to 1 and Gladys for the win. Oookay. As you can see, they don’t really take into account judges scores, professional partner – anything other than their own personal stereotypes. I don’t think they watch the show. 🙂 Or consider the DWTS demographic when it comes to voting. It’s rather important, as we all know.