LOS ANGELES — Dancing beauty Karina Smirnoff will pose nude in the May issue of Playboy magazine.
“The May issue of Playboy is unforgettable with ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Karina Smirnoff on the cover & nude inside,” Playboy’s founder Hugh Hefner tweeted late Wednesday announcing the news.
This will not be the first time the Ukrainian-born ballroom pro has stripped down — she posed nude for a PETA advertisement in 2009, while a strategically placed hand of an unknown dance partner rested on her chest.
“I’d rather dance naked than wear fur,” the advertisement read.
The 33-year-old is currently competing on season 12 of “Dancing with the Stars” with frontrunner, “Karate Kid” actor Ralph Macchio. One of Hefner’s former girlfriends, Kendra Wilkinson, is also appearing on the show this season.
Smirnoff previously dated the show’s resident hottie, Maksim “Maks” Chmerkovskiy, but is currently engaged to baseball player Brad Penny.
He met the dancing star through a mutual friend, UFC fighter Chuck Liddell, and the two began dating in October 2009. He popped the question in November with a $95,000, 4.5 carat diamond engagement ring. The pair is planning to wed this fall.
In January 2011, Penny agreed to a one-year, $3 million contract with the Detroit Tigers.