Viewers of Strictly Come Dancing have found themselves divided over the judges' criticisms of Cach Mercer and Maddie Ingoldsby's quickstep.

The duo performed to I Just Might by Bruno Mars, and in the piece there were some freestyle moves from Mercer, which didn't go down well with the judges.

While the couple did receive 20 points from the judges, it didn't come without its criticism, with Craig Revel Horwood noting that there was "too much freestyle" in the performance.

"You are a great freestyle dancer, that is a fact, we know that," he began. "We don't need to see that, I don't think, here, in a quickstep. The whole point of this is you're learning a new genre of dance and to throw all of that into it. So I'm finding it really difficult to actually judge that, and I'm going to judge what quickstep you actually did, and the posture wasn't great, the frame wasn't great, I'm sorry."

Shirley Ballas echoed a similar sentiment, telling the pair that she agreed with Horwood: "I liked the beginning when you started solo and I actually wouldn't have minded a bit at the end. You've got potential to be a great ballroom dancer, and this was more like we were seeing a street dance, which is coming. I love the bits of choreography that were put together... I'm afraid I have to go with Craig. But are you gifted? Absolutely."

Fellow judge Motsi Mabuse noted that while she understood Horwood's comments, she offered praise to the duo: "For me, I just have to say something that I think is really, really important. Dance is about music and music lives in your body; that was genius for me. The way you work with the music."

Viewers have also shared their reaction online, with some in agreement with the judges while others are not too sure, as they enjoyed the performance.

One user wrote: "Cach. If that was a couples choice then yes but its ballroom. I'm glad Shirley and Craig called them out on it."

Another wrote: "Craig was correct about Cach btw, the freestyle stuff was incredible but it was supposed to be a quickstep, not a couples choice."

However, other viewers simply enjoyed the performance or what it was, with one viewer writing: "Blah blah blah... Cach was sensational! I can't wait to see him dance some more. He didn't choreograph the dance."

"Can we stop critiquing the celebs on choreography when they're not choreographing the routines. Please and thanks. Cach was great," another viewer wrote.

Mercer previously spoke to about his dancing background, sharing: "[I'm] just self-taught to be honest. I got a few gigs, danced for some big artists. But [I] literally just made a name for myself dancing for fun, and [have] been putting my phone on the floor since five years ago. So this is a big step up."

The social media personality first rose to fame after his appearance on Love Island in 2025, which he won alongside ex-girlfriend Toni Laites.

Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday 3 October at 6:15pm on BBC One and iPlayer.

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