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Clayton Echard is shedding more light on his rekindling with ex Rachel Recchia on Perfect Match.
The former Bachelor lead, 32, appeared on the Aug. 7 episode of The Viall Files podcast, and explained that although he “really enjoyed” the experience, he didn’t feel the same once he watched the show back.
“Unfortunately, I’m not too happy with the edit,” he confessed. “I’m not going to sit here and dodge responsibility, but I just thought it went differently. I thought it could have been portrayed differently.”
The reality TV personality acknowledged that “there’s always missing context,” but said he understands producers have to make choices due to “only having so much time to use when they air these episodes.”
Clayton was initially matched with Siesta Key alum Juliette Porter in the first episode, but once Rachel, 29, joined the villa in episode, he set his sights on her.
As fans may remember, Rachel was one of the finalists on Clayton’s season of The Bachelor in 2022. Right before the finale, he ended his relationship with her and fellow runner-up Gabby Windey because he still had feelings for Susie Evans, who he had previously eliminated. Clayton and Susie rekindled their romance but ultimately called things off in September 2022.
Netflix
However, Clayton explained to host Nick Viall that he “genuinely did not expect [Rachel] to walk through the door.”
“When she walked in, it was a rush of emotions. All the feelings that you once had, they come back up,” he revealed, noting that he realized that things may have “changed” between them but he felt a sense of hope. “Maybe now this is the right timing for us. So that’s what all went through my head.”
After Clayton asked Rachel to match with him, his intuition took over, and he realized they weren’t a match. “How I got to that point was through the conversations we had [and] my intuition, the things that I’m looking for in life, prior experiences, the conversations her and I had [and] there were things that were said that I said, ‘Yeah, this isn’t going to work,’ ” he explained.
He added: “I know what it is I’m looking for, and things have changed. We’ve changed.”
In addition to following his intuition, Clayton said there were “a couple other things” that swayed his decision to end things with Rachel.
However, he told Nick he would not publicly disclose that on the podcast or to Rachel, explaining, “I don’t think she would receive them well.”
“I think she would feel, like, they were an attack if I were to say it coming from me,” he said. “It will be something that she’ll understand over time.”
Craig Sjodin via Getty
Thinking about his experiences on The Bachelor and Perfect Match, Clayton claimed that the editing misrepresented his connection with Rachel.
“The edit made it seem like Rachel and I had a stronger connection when I felt that my lived experience, I had a stronger connection with Susie,” he explained. “So when people kept saying it, though, it started to infiltrate my mind.”
“I’m willing to say that maybe I was wrong, like maybe I wasn’t seeing the right things because I didn’t have the emotional intelligence,” he said. “So maybe I need to listen more to what the majority is saying and give it a second chance and I guess this is my second chance.”
Despite following his intuition, Clayton emphasized that he “never had any intention of hurting” Rachel.
In a previous interview with PEOPLE, Clayton explained: “Unfortunately, in dating shows, there’s emotions attached, so it’s hard to get out unscathed.”
Meanwhile, Rachel told PEOPLE that she was not sure if she “ever really felt comfortable” about giving Clayton another chance.
“I was doubting myself the whole time, but I think I never really got a full answer leaving The Bachelor. And there’s always been this ‘what if?'” she shared. “Even for the audience, everyone still wonders ‘what if?’ And I think I knew that no matter what, I was going to get my answer. And I did.”
After Clayton ended things with Rachel, he decided to leave the villa after realizing there were no other potential matches for him to explore. Rachel went on to match with Love Island USA alum Scott van-der-Sluis.
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The first six episodes of Perfect Match season 3 are now streaming on Netflix. Additional episodes will drop weekly through the finale on Aug. 15.
