If that wasn't enough, when they came back for their second dance of the night, their instant Jive earned triple tens again.
"I think all of us, in the back of our mind, wanted that first perfect score of the season, but two 30s?" said Martinez, incredulous of his accomplishment. "The instant Jive, everybody was nervous about that. You didn't know what your music was like, but I have an amazing teacher."
Smirnoff said she has a pretty amazing student with an endless supply of an attribute you really need if you're going to go for that mirror ball trophy.
"His energy? Oh my gosh, he can fill up the room with that energy and probably support the whole city of lights," Smirnoff said.
The tandem said last night's excitement triggered out-of-body experiences for both of them. For Martinez, it's the second time he's felt that.
"I've experienced that once before in my life and the only time I experienced that when my life was changing in Iraq in April of 2003," the military veteran said. "It just felt like an out-of-body experience and not knowing what was going to happen. This was kind of like one of those same moments but in the most powerful, positive way ever."
It's no secret Martinez has overcome a lot in his life, and the support he's getting from his partner is helping him overcome a whole different set of obstacles.
"I have an amazing friend, an amazing teacher, that pushes me every single day because she knows it's in me, and this competition has really given me an opportunity to remind myself what the possibilities are if I put my mind to it," Martinez said.
Monday night's perfect scores almost certainly secure Martinez a spot in next week's semi-finals.
One more couple goes home Tuesday night.
