Entertainment

Tonight will decide the winner of Dancing With the Stars' sixth season. But it may also settle the debate that has raged among fans from the beginning. Is DWTS a dance competition or a popularity contest?

The best performer during Monday night's two dances – a "cha-cha faceoff" and the final freestyle – was the celebrity who has been the best (by far) all season: Kristi Yamaguchi. Her cha-cha was wow-wow, and she and partner Mark Ballas whirred, kicked, hipped and hopped through a high-energy freestyle. Simply put, neither Jason Taylor nor Cristián de la Fuente could come even close to matching Kristi's style or precision. Of course, that's been the crux of another debate that's been waged among viewers this season – does Kristi, the Olympic-champion ice skater, hold an unfair advantage over her competitors with their dance-free résumés?

After Monday night, it seems a moot point verging on sour grapes. Kristi was and is the best dancer, by far, and judging by the judges (who couldn't wait to start waving perfect 10s at Kristi), she deserves to win and become the first woman to win since the debut season. But if the show is a popularity contest, then the winner is likely to be – who? Up until a couple of weeks ago, the easy answer was Jason Taylor, the football star who has turned out to be a natural on the dance floor. But then Cristián hurt his arm, and ever since he's been wincing with pain and grabbing his injured arm while insisting that he doesn't want any sympathy. He can't dance, but if that mattered he wouldn't be in the finals anyway.

Jason is the best symbol of this show's professed premise – to challenge a bunch of amateurs to find and unleash their inner dancers. But Kristi Yamaguchi is the best dancer. So which will it be? My one-word prediction: Kristi.