Who needs “The Bachelor”?
“Dancing With the Stars” is prime-time’s most compelling dating show.
All the bumping, grinding and half-naked bodies have both pros and celebrities hopping in the sack like teenagers on prom night.
“When you have two single people in a room and you are spending so much time together, it’s natural to have chemistry and to be curious,” longtime pro Cheryl Burke tells The Post.
“All of a sudden you think you are in love because you are grinding on each other seven days a week.”
Backstage love connections happen “a lot more than people know,” pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy confirms.
And they rarely end well.
One celebrity nearly left his wife for a pro who has bedded as many as four other participants, an on-set source reveals.
“They all fool around with each other,” the insider says. “The problem is that many of these people are married. It is disgusting!”
While much of their time at work is spent in front of producers and cameras, the dancing partners often retreat to L.A nightclubs for late-night rendezvous.
Last month, Pamela Anderson fueled speculation of a budding romance when she invited partner Tristan MacManus on a Mexican vacation, during an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”
“Pam is totally into him, but Tristan is madly in love with his girlfriend [Australian model Tahyna Tozzi, 26],” our spy says.
The show has no official policy about workplace hookups, but producers are often faced with cleaning up the mess when a showmance fizzles out.
All-Star contestant Shawn Johnson had “a nasty breakup” with pro Mark Ballas after they won the mirrorball trophy in season eight, a source says. “That’s why they couldn’t be paired up again [for the All-Star shows].”
Both parties have denied the affair.
“Us dancers are very touchy feely,” Burke says. “We’re used to grinding on each other. But for other people, that’s not normal. This is why feelings start to happen. They think ‘she likes me.’ ”
The two time champ admits to canoodling with only one of her previous partners. She won’t say who, but insists “it wasn’t a great experience.”
Burke, 29, may have been referring to disgraced football star Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson, who asked her out in 2010 during a televised interview on “Entertainment Tonight.” (She said yes!)
After the pair were eliminated, Johnson presented her with a $10,000 diamond ring.
“I gave it back to him,” she says. “I felt weird wearing that big diamond that first of all is way too big for my hand. And it sent a weird message. Like, what are you guys engaged?
Maks, 32, did become engaged — to fellow dancer Karina Smirnoff — in 2009, but the romance quickly flamed out, creating an awkward work environment
“There is bad blood,” he told The Post last year. “I will never speak to that person again.”
Maks — who is currently paired with Kirstie Alley -— admits he also “crossed the line” with partner Willa Ford during Season 3.
He is now dating Australian dancer Peta Murgatroyd, who recently ended a five-year courtship with “Dancing” pro Damian Whitewood.
(Whitewood is reportedly dating Russell Crowe’s estranged wife, Danielle Spencer, a contestant on “Dancing with The Stars” in Australia.)
A source close to the show says Maks’ brother Valentin may be the next dancer to take the plunge with his celebrity partner, Kelly Monaco.
“I truly believe that by the end of the season they will hook up,” the spy says. “They are both very emotional people. Right now they want to concentrate on the competition, but they have more chemistry than I have seen in years.”