Bachelor Nation
‘The Bachelor’ Star Clayton Echard Slams Ex Gabby Windey for ‘Bullying’ Him
More than three years after their season of The Bachelor aired, Clayton Echard and Gabby Windey have found themselves at odds. The exes are engaged in a social media feud after Windey mocked Echard in a podcast interview and he responded via Instagram.
It started after Windey appeared on the Las Culturistas podcast. She discussed dating Echard and what she thinks of him now.
“Have you seen his dancing videos?” Windey asked. “Oh my God. They will make you run. I’m gonna send you one, and you wish you didn’t have eyes.” Echard has recently started taking dance lessons as a new hobby and often posts videos of his classes on Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
Windey then referred to the former football player as “toe-looking” while wondering how she was able to fall in love with him on The Bachelor. Echard shared clips of the interview and then addressed what his ex said.
“Gabby, what you’re doing is bullying,” Echard said. “There’s no other way around it. You’re attacking me for my physical appearance. You’re attacking me for a passion that I love that’s changed my life. It’s unnecessary, and it’s not funny. Videos you make where you comment … you have such a large platform, and you’re setting a really bad example. It’s just disheartening to see. You have this platform, and this is how you choose to use it.”
He urged The Traitors star to “do better” and said he didn’t feel that her comments were made in a “lighthearted” way. “I don’t want to hear, ‘Just relax, it’s a joke.’ It’s not a joke,” Echard insisted. “I haven’t talked to you in three years, and you continue to take shots at me and it’s just unnecessary. So I hope you do better, and I don’t have to keep making videos like this, but I do believe accountability should be had.”
Echard admitted that he was “debating” whether or not to even respond to Windey publicly but said he no longer believes in being “people pleaser” who will just keep his mouth shut so he doesn’t upset somebody. The former reality star also opened up about what an important outlet dance has become for him and acknowledged that he’s “not the greatest at it,” but uses it for self love and self confidence.
Windey was one of the final 3 contestants on Echard’s Bachelor season, along with Rachel Recchia and Susie Evans. He famously dumped both Recchia and Windey at the same time in order to pursue a relationship with Evans after fantasy suites. Evans chose not to leave the show in a relationship with Echard, but they wound up getting back together after filming ended and dated for a few months.
Meanwhile, Windey and Recchia became the joint leads of The Bachelorette, and Windey got engaged to Erich Schwer. However, they split just months after the finale aired.
