Not everyone loves the idea of Arie Luyendyk Jr. handing out roses as The Bachelor — former buddy Jef Holm included! (The bromance is officially over, folks.)

Yes, these guys certainly seem to be on the outs now, but back when they were contestants on The Bachelorette Season 8, they were as close as “two peas in a pod.” At least, that’s what mutual friend and former contestant Chris Bukowski — who recently opened Chicago-based restaurant Bracket Room — told Life & Style exclusively. In fact, Chris hasn’t the foggiest idea why Arie and Jef are beefin’!

“I have no idea what the rift is, but it doesn’t seem too good …. I’m sure we’ll find out eventually,” he said.

Here’s the backstory: Shortly after ABC announced Arie as the next star of the long-running dating show, Jef dissed the Dutch racecar driver. “Oh, the stories I could tell,” he tweeted about Arie. “I stopped being friends with him years ago because he’s disgusting.”

And to this day, we still have no idea why Jef has an ax to grind with Arie. Jef even beat out the now-36-year-old as the winner of Bachelorette Emily Maynard‘s heart (though their engagement was short-lived).

View this post on Instagram

Cruisin' to Mom & Dad's after a Bears victory!

A post shared by Chris Bukowski (@chrisjbukowski) on

For his part, Chris seems glad Arie is the star of the upcoming season. “I sent him a message the morning before he started filming,” he told us. “Arie’s going to be great because he’ll be himself, and I think the best thing about Arie, different from a lot of the Bachelors, is that he’s actually a bachelor in real life … He’s successful, and he’s a good guy.”

We’ll find out if Arie will be just as successful in love as he is in his career — the dude has an impressive net worth! — when The Bachelor Season 22 premieres in January. Jef, meanwhile, will surely be rooting for televised heartbreak!

Check out former Bachelor Sean Lowe’s funniest tweets in the video below — and be sure to join our Bachelor Facebook group to chat about all the latest updates, exclusive interviews, and juicy gossip!