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Is ‘Bachelorette’ Alum Rachel Recchia Back Together With Clayton Echard? Clues, Relationship Details
Happily ever after? Bachelorette alum Rachel Recchia and Bachelor alum Clayton Echard sparked reconciliation rumors with a flirty TikTok video. But are they back together? Keep reading for everything we know about their relationship status.
How Did Rachel Recchia and Clayton Echard Meet?
After coming in eighth place during Michelle Young’s season of The Bachelorette in the fall of 2021, Clayton was announced as the star of the following season of The Bachelor.
Thirty women, including Rachel, competed for Clayton’s heart during season 26, which premiered in January 2022. Rachel and Clayton hit it off right away, and she even landed a coveted hometown date.
“I promised myself I wouldn’t fall in love in love with multiple women, but I fell in love with three,” the Bachelor Nation star told People in January 2022. “At that point, I accepted it, but I realized I was going to have to stop using absolutes. I handled it to the best of my ability. It wasn’t perfect! I learned a lot of lessons. And that’s life.”
The Missouri native ultimately sent Rachel home during the finale along with Gabby Windey, before proposing to winner Susie Evans. Susie became the first woman in Bachelor history to reject the star’s proposal, and Clayton finished his season single.
Despite declining his proposal, Susie and Clayton reunited after filming and moved in together. However, their off-screen relationship was short-lived, and the pair split for good in September 2022.
Are Rachel and Clayton Back Together?
Following her stint on The Bachelor, Rachel went on to co-lead the following season of The Bachelorette, alongside friend and fellow Clayton runner-up Gabby. After a historic season, Rachel accepted a proposal from Tino Franco.
However, as the season was airing between July and September 2022, it was revealed that the general contractor had cheated on his fiancée, and the two split.
Following their split, the commercial airline pilot played coy when asked about her dating life in December 2022.
“I don’t know! Pure speculation. I don’t know,” the reality star told Us Weekly at the time, after sparking romance rumors by sharing a photo of a man with a tattooed arm via her Instagram Story. “I had to watch myself make so many mistakes on the show, which I’m glad and I did learn from. I’m taking all those lessons into my new dating life and figuring out what I really want.”
Rachel later left fans wondering if she and Clayton had reunited when she shared a fun TikTok video with her ex and his ex, Michelle.
“Are you going to tell us what’s going on?” the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast host asked her friends in a video shared by Rachel on February 1, 2023.
“I would, but I think explaining it might give us both an aneurysm,” Rachel responded as the camera panned out to show Clayton sitting next to her.
For his part, Clayton shared a video to his Instagram Story which showed that the trio were accompanied by pals Caelynn Miller-Keyes, Blake Horstmann and Giannina Gibelli.
“Hi guys! It’s me hanging with my friends,” he said before panning the room. “Little breakfast action.”
Though Clayton and Rachel kept any signs of reconciliation under wraps officially, the pilot later took to her Instagram Stories to seemingly address the situation. “U guys have me dedd it’s all in good fun [sic],” Rachel wrote over a selfie of her flashing the peace sign. “Healing and forgiveness is a lesson I had trouble learning for a long time. I promise I’m not leaving this era quite yet.”
She doubled down on her status with Clayton, calling him her “friend” and confirming they are not dating during an interview with TMZ on February 7.
One month later, Clayton opened up about the infamous TikTok during an appearance on “The Ben and Ashley I. Almost Famous Podcast,” saying that the pals decided to “have some fun.”
“It popped off and then all of the sudden I had to start answering to some things,” he said in March 2023. “Of course people on the internet like to gas everything up and see if there’s something more than what there is there, so of course all these questions came and followed.”
Reps for Clayton and Rachel did not immediately respond to Life & Style’s request for comment.
