The Bachelorette alum Clare Dawkins (formerly known as Clare Crawley) threw some serious shade at Matt James amid his shocking breakup with Rachael Kirkconnell.
"Catching up on socal news and [shaking my head] at some of this stuff," Clare, 43, wrote via her Instagram Stories on Tuesday, January 28. "Remembering that one time I specifically asked producers to please not allow one specific guy on my season because I knew for a fact he was NOT looking for a serious relationship whatsoever and I didn't want him to waste anyone's time. So, instead, they made him the next Bachelor."
While Clare didn't mention Matt, 33, specifically, he starred in season 25 of The Bachelor, which aired in 2021. It directly followed Clare's season 16 of The Bachelorette in 2020, which he was initially slated to appear on before getting the call to be the Bachelor.
Clare's dig at Matt came on the heels of Rachael's emotional interview on Alex Cooper's "Call Her Daddy" podcast that aired the same day. During her time on the show, Rachael, 28, revealed that Matt admitted he wasn't ready for marriage with her and was "adamant that [she] had a hard time admitting [she] was wrong or taking accountability."
Rachael explained that during their trip to Tokyo, Matt became "concerned" after she became upset after the restaurant she chose for them to dine at wasn't great. She was worried because it meant Matt wouldn't be able to use the content for his online food reviews. However, Matt was more annoyed that she was upset about something he considered to not be a big deal, according to the graphic designer.
"He was just trying to tell me, ‘It's not that serious; it's not that big of a deal," Rachael said. "Then he was concerned about me getting so upset. He was trying to tell me, ‘There was no reason for you to get upset like that.' He found it concerning that I got that emotional, I guess."
She continued, "He was just trying to express to me, ‘If you get emotional about little things like this, what is going to happen in life when something really terrible happens? How are you going to be able to react to things that are actually really scary or disappointing or sad?'"
The following day, Rachael revealed that Matt "just kind of let out everything" that "he had been feeling for a while."
"He said that at the end of the day there were just qualities about me that he worries about having in a wife and there are things that we aren't compatible with and, like, the whole accountability and saying sorry and all that," Rachael told Alex, 30, while getting choked up.
The Georgia native added that Matt had "this realization" that he "couldn't see himself proposing" to her.
Matt announced his and Rachael's split on January 16 via Instagram, just one day after he posted a TikTok video of the two of them enjoying dinner in London.
"Father God, give Rachael and I strength to mend our broken hearts. Give us a peace about this decision to end our relationship that transcends worldly understanding," Matt captioned a photo of himself and Rachael taken during his season of The Bachelor. "Shower our friends and family with kindness and love to comfort us. And remind us that our Joy comes from you, Lord "
