New man on the hook: Jennifer Lopez is rumoured to be dating Maksim Chmerkovskiy, pictured at the American Music awards in November

 

Not true: Jennifer denied reports that she is dating Maksim on her Twitter Thursday

Casper was famously one of J-Lo’s backup dancers, and the Jenny From The Block star apparently formed a connection with Maksim after he danced onstage with her at the American Music Awards in November.

According to People J-Lo met the 34-year-old hunk through mutual friend Leah Remini but the two are taking their time getting to know each other, as they are both busy with their careers.

‘He danced with her at the [American Music Awards last November] and they kept in touch,’ a source told the publication.

Maksim was previously linked to Kate Upton, who at 22 is exactly half the age of J-Lo.

Meanwhile, appearing to confirm the rumours, Jennifer and Leah attended Maksim’s brother Val’s birthday party in Los Angeles in March.

Love connection: The 44-year-old was introduced to the DWTS pro by mutual friend Leah Remini

That’s one way to get her! The pro dancer tossed J-Lo into the air with nothing but his brute strength

And the insider believes they may become an official couple, saying: ‘I think they could. Who knows what will happen?’

But multiple sources with Us Weekly deny the romance, saying that the two are ‘just friends’.

People contacted reps for both stars, and they declined to comment.

Meanwhile, it is being claimed by sources with RadarOnline that Jennifer drove Casper away through her fitness obsession.

Happier times: Jennifer pictured with Casper Smart in London in October 2012

It emerged earlier this month that the 27-year-old dancer had sent trans𝓈ℯ𝓍ual model Sofia Vissa a revealing photo of himself where all he’s wearing is a pair of boxer shorts. The image first appeared in InTouch.

And on Friday a source confirmed to MailOnline that the American Idol judge and Smart – who had been together for two-and-a-half years – had split.

Now a Radarinsider claims: ‘Jennifer’s obsession with her own body is out of control. There’s no doubt she’s worked herself into the ground to achieve her 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁er shape.’

Adding: ‘In the end, Jen and Casper had nothing else to talk about except diet and exercise stuff, and that was exactly how she wanted it. Jennifer used to love talking about fashion and movies with her girlfriends, but now it’s “this cleanse,” “that workout routine.” She’s like a fitness robot who has nothing else in her life!’

Moving on? J-Lo has not slowed down since her split, pictured at the American Idol arrivals carpet last month

Jennifer Lopez goes solo on the red carpet and stunsLoaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00PreviousPlaySkipMuteCurrent Time0:00/Duration Time0:59FullscreenNeed Text