On February 9, 2009, "Good Morning America" announced that he would be paired with Denise Richards for the eighth season of "Dancing with the Stars". They were eliminated second in the competition, giving the pair a finish of 12th place. In the ninth season, he was paired with actress Debi Mazar, during which they were eliminated fourth. Halfway through season 9, Chmerkovskiy partnered Joanna Krupa for one week while Derek Hough was ill. Krupa and Chmerkovskiy danced an Argentine Tango and participated in the '70s themed group dance.