Click here to watch Mel B's final performance

Spice Girl Melanie Brown lost the final of American TV show Dancing With The Stars last night.

The pop singer won top marks from the judges with her final performance of the Mamba, but viewers were behind Brazilian racing driver Helio Castroneves, voting him into first place.

Brown, known as Mel B and Scary Spice, had earlier said that to win would show she had been embraced by America and that would mean “everything” to her. But a gleeful Castroneves took home the mirror ball trophy from the US version of Strictly Come Dancing, leaving Brown in second place.

When Castroneves, and partner Julianne Hough, were declared the winners, Brown insisted she had “enjoyed all of it”.

But earlier in the two-hour live finale the Spice Girl, partnered by professional dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy, had voiced her determination to win:

"To be embraced by America, would be... I would actually be speechless.

"Me and Maks have come so far. We are not prepared to throw it all away. We have to win it for all those people that have been voting for us.

"I've had so much fun, everyone's so cool here. It's been an amazing journey.

"Coming in second or third is not an option for me. I like to start something and finish it right on top."

Rehearsals for the upcoming Spice Girls tour meant Brown, 32, was unable to practice as often as other contestants, but that didn’t stop her becoming the judges’ favourite. All three judges heaped saccharine praise on the Spice Girl and awarded her 10 out of 10 for her final routine.

Len Goodman, a professional ballroom judge, described her as “the most versatile dancer we’ve ever had on Dancing with the Stars.”

"You are an absolute revelation, your ballroom throughout the whole season... This mambo was incredible, fabulous," he said.

Bruno Tonioli, a film, music, video and theatre choreographer, said: "What can I say, truly magnificent. You really have proven you're the complete dancer.

"But not only that. Your determination, your professionalism, and your good humour is a credit to you. You're a star."

During the semi final, on Monday, the four other Spice Girls attended the show to support Brown, with Emma Bunton later describing her band mate “brilliant”.

Brown does not have long to recover from the high-rating series. The mother-of-two is due on stage, in Vancouver, for the first Spice Girls reunion concert on Sunday.

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