Ralph Macchio Dancing with the Stars

Carrie Ann Inaba said she “admired him for getting out here” but it wasn’t so easy for Ralph Macchio once he got under the mirror ball: A painful knee injury prevented Macchio and partner Karina Smirnoff from banking some adequate rehearsal time, so they earned 25 out of 30 points for their Viennese waltz on Monday’s Dancing with the Stars. Adding insult to injury (quite literally), the duo followed up the performance by earning only 21 out of 30 points for their instant cha cha.

Needless to say, Macchio isn’t feeling that great about surviving another week on the show. “I hope we do,” he told reporters afterwards. “We need [votes] because we have so much more to offer. [Quitting] wasn’t an option. Saturday – it was an option. Saturday, it was an option. I couldn’t do anything.”

In case you missed what happened, here’s a blow-by-blow account, courtesy of the duo themselves:

“It’s a Baker’s cyst,” Macchio began.

“Accumulation of fluid,” Smirnoff continued.

“Severe inflammation and tendentious behind my knee. It formed a Baker’s cyst,” said Macchio.

“It ruptured,” added Smirnoff. “It probably hit a bone.”

“Acidity from the fluid is draining down…that’s why my calf is more bothersome today than my knee,” Macchio said. “It eventually dissipates in three to five days, maybe a week. But you’re not supposed to be…”

Dancing, Ralph? You’re not supposed to be dancing? Smirnoff took this one. “We tried a different treatment that we were hoping was going to work and it didn’t. It made things even worse,” she admitted. “But at the end of the show he’s going to get a discount to Promises because of all the drugs.” Oh my.

Macchio will see where he stands (no pun intended) on Wednesday — assuming he avoids elimination on Tuesday. “The problem is I’m putting a lot of strain on it,” the actor admitted. “Boy would it suck not having the opportunity to get back in it.” – With reporting from Carrie Borzillo