After she had one of the best limo entrances on Clayton’s Bachelor season, fans want to know more about Pilot Rachel from The Bachelor 2022 and whether she finds a co-pilot in Clayton.

Rachel was one of 30 contestants on The Bachelor season 26 with Clayton Echard. Clayton, a 28-year-old medical sales rep from Columbia, Missouri, was a contestant on The Bachelorette season 18 with Michelle Young, where he was eliminated in eighth place. Clayton was announced as the season 26 Bachelor in November 2021, however, photos of him filming The Bachelor leaked in September 2021, a month before Michelle’s Bachelorette season even premiered.

According to Reality Steve, several contestants from The Bachelorette season 17 with Katie Thurston were on the short list to be the next Bachelor, such as Greg Grippo and Andrew Spencer, but ABC chose Clayton for his story. “Clayton stood out right off the bat,” a source told Us Weekly at the time. “Producers ended up going with him because they believed he was the best fit for the role. They wanted to switch things up and go with someone new and someone who hasn’t been in the spotlight yet.” 

In an interview with Good Morning America in November 2021, Clayton confirmed that he found love on The Bachelor season 26. “I did find love, and I was a little skeptical going into the whole journey but I’m so pleasantly surprised that things worked out much different than what I had thought,” he said. “I’m just so excited to watch it back and have everyone else watch it as well.” Clayton also told Good Morning America that came into The Bachelor with a “checklist of sorts” but but the women surprised him when “they brought all of that and so much more.”

So what happens to Rachel on The Bachelor 2022? Read on how far Rachel makes it on The Bachelor season 26 and that drama that’s ahead for her, Clayton and another contestant.  (For more Bachelor 2022 spoilers, click here.)

Who is Rachel from The Bachelor 2022?

Image: ABC/Ricky Middlesworth.

Who is Rachel Recchia from The Bachelor 2022? Rachel is 25 years old. She lives in Clermont, Florida, near Orlando. Her Instagram handle is @pilot.rachel. “♡commercial pilot ♡flight instructor ( ii ) ♡orlando” reads her Instagram bio. On the premiere of The Bachelor season 26, Rachel posted an Instagram photo of her and Clayton from her limo entrance on Night One with the caption: “And so our journey begins 🤍 Thanks to Holly for putting in a good word for me, hopefully I can take it from here #thebachelor #bachelornation.”

In her Bachelor bio, Rachel described herself as a “hopeless romantic” who is looking for someone “nurturing, empathetic” and “respectful.” “Rachel is a fearless frequent flyer looking for a man who will travel the world with her,” her bio reads. “After recently earning her private pilot license, the future is nothing but sunny skies ahead for Rachel and now she is hoping to find a co-pilot that matches her sense of adventure. As a hopeless romantic, Rachel is looking for someone who is as playful, passionate and spontaneous as she is. He should be nurturing, empathetic and MUST be respectful in all facets of life – to her, to family, and especially to waiters. In the end, Rachel wants to find crazy, insane love that makes sense to no one else but her and her soul mate.”

For her fun facts, Rachel listed the following:

• Rachel could live off of Flaming Hot Cheetos.

• Rachel can’t wait to read the Harry Potter series with her kids one day. •

Rachel once organized a flash mob in high school

What is Rachel’s job?

What is Rachel’s job? Rachel lists her job on The Bachelor as a “Flight Instructor.” Her Instagram bio also lists her job as a pilot, as well as her Instagram handle @pilot.rachel. According to her Instagram, Rachel has flown in locations like Columbus, Ohio; Athens, Ohio; Springfield, Missouri; and Lakeland, Florida. She was also attended Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, where she was a cheerleader.

What happens to Rachel on The Bachelor 2022?

What happens to Rachel on The Bachelor 2022? Rachel makes it to the final three on The Bachelor season 26 and may win, according to Reality Steve. Rachel had one One-on-One date with Clayton in week four in Houston, Texas, where she received a rose. For the date, Clayton and Rachel to on a small-town, Texas-style barbecue and a private concert from the country band Restless Road.

Rachel has her Hometown Date with Clayton in Orlando, Florida. According to Reality Steve, Clayton had sex with both Rachel and Sarah Hamrick, a 23-year-old wealth management advisor from New York City, New York.The moment Clayton tells Sarah and Rachel he had sex with them is seen in The Bachelor 2022 trailer, which shows him telling that he was “intimate” with both of them. According to Reality Steve, Clayton told Sarah and Rachel this during the seventh Rose Ceremony in Vienna, Austria, where he eliminated Sarah and gave a rose to Rachel.

SPOILER: Who is The Bachelor 2022 winner?

Image: Courtesy of ABC.

Who is The Bachelor 2022 winner? The winner for The Bachelor season 26 with Clayton Echard hasn’t been confirmed yet, but Reality Steve reports that the final three are Susie Evans, a 28-year-old wedding videographer from Virginia Beach, Virginia; Rachel Recchia, a 25-year-old flight instructor from Clermont, Florida; and Gabby Windey, a 30-year-old ICU nurse from Denver, Colorado. A Reddit post by @workingbach13 in December 2021 theorized that the winner was either Susie or Rachel because they both followed Cary Fetman on Instagram. Cary is the Bachelor franchise’s stylist and costume designer who often styles the lead and the last two contestants for the Final Rose Ceremony.

The post speculated that Susie could’ve won Clayton’s Bachelor season because she was the first of the final three Bachelor contestants to return to social media, which has been consistent with past Bachelor and Bachelorette winners. Susie’s family and friends also follow Clayton on Instagram. A fan account has also posted an alleged screenshot of Susie commenting heart eye emojis on one of Clayton’s recent Instagram photos, which he liked. Susie also received the Pretty Woman date—a.k.a. a date where the lead and the contestant go on a shopping spree—in Vienna, Austria, in week seven, which has been indicative of other Bachelor and Bachelorette winners who have had similar dates, such as Rachel Kirkconnell from The Bachelor season 25 with Matt James; Hannah Ann Sluss from The Bachelor season 24 with Peter Weber; Becca Kufrin from The Bachelor season 22 with Arie Luyendyk Jr.; and Bryan Abasolo from The Bachelorette season 13 with Rachel Lindsay. Reality Steve also hinted in a tweet in November 2021 that there’s evidence that Susie won Clayton’s Bachelor season. “Do I post pics of Susie from Clayton’s season out last night so the subsequent dissection of the pics, freak out, and speculation from the fans can commence?” he tweeted.

The post, however, also speculated that Rachel could’ve won Clayton’s Bachelor season because she returned to social media at the exact time Clayton did. Rachel’s mom also followed Clayton on Instagram but unfollowed him when filming ended. Rachel Clayton also both liked the same Instagram photo of The Bachelor host Jesse Palmer 20 minutes after it was posted, even though Rachel doesn’t follow Jesse on Instagram. Rachel was also the only contestant from Clayton’s final three that liked season 18 Bachelorette Michelle Young’s first photo with her winner, Nayte Olukoya, which Clayton also liked.

It hasn’t been confirmed whether Clayton and his Bachelor winner are engaged, but if he did propose, it’s almost certain that the ring was designed by Neil Lane, a celebrity jeweler, who has created engagement rings for The Bachelor, The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise since 2008. In a 2016 interview with Entertainment Weekly, former host Chris Harrison revealed that Bachelor Nation couples have to stay together for a certain amount of time, otherwise they have to return the free engagement ring to Neil Lane. “There’s some rule, after a certain number of years, you get to keep it anyway,” he said. “But after months… it goes back.”

Lane told StyleCaster in 2016 that he doesn’t know where the rings go, but that he designs them with the hope that the couple to stays together. “I make rings hoping that people stay together forever, but after they get the ring, I don’t have a say in it, and what happens after that, I don’t know,” he said. “Where the ring goes, I have to say, I don’t really know. I just say it goes to ring heaven.”

Who is The Bachelor 2022, Clayton Echard? 

Image: ABC/John Fleenor.

In case you didn’t know: Clayton Echard is The Bachelor 2022. Clayton, a 28-year-old medical sales rep from Columbia, Missouri, was a contestant on The Bachelorette season 18 with Michelle Young. He was eliminated in week six in eighth place. He was sent home after a One-on-One date with Michelle, who told him that there’s “something missing” between them. “I just want to find love so badly,” he said in a confessional interview after his elimination. “And have a family. And start that chapter of my life. I want it more than anything else. I’ll do whatever it takes to get there. Whatever it takes.” After his elimination, Clayton received a letter from Michelle’s student, who cheers him on. “This just shows me I want kids one day,” Clayton said as he read the letter. The episode also shows a producer asking the student what should be next for Clayton, to which the student says, “He’ll be the next Bachelor.”

So who is The Bachelor 2022, Clayton Echard? According to his Linkedin, Clayton graduated from the University of Missouri, Columbia, in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in health professions and related clinical sciences. He’s also set to earn a Master of Business Administration in health and healthcare from Southeast Missouri State University in 2023. Clayton has worked a sales representative at Stryker, a medical devices company, since January 2018. He was hired in 2016 as a sales associate.

While at the University of Missouri, Clayton was a division 1 collegiate athlete for the university’s football team, the Missouri Tigers. After graduation, he was a professional NFL player for the Seattle Seahawks from August to September 2016. “After outperforming 4 other tight ends on a tryout basis with the Seattle Seahawks, I signed on as a free agent. While there, I practiced daily with the team and played in 4 preseason games. I made it past the first round of cuts, however, I was not able to make the final roster. Nonetheless, it was a unique experience that I was blessed to be a part of,” Clayton’s Linkedin reads. According to his Instagram, @claytonechard, Clayton is also a former freestyle rapper and refers to himself as a “washed-up athlete.” He confirmed that his current industry is still orthopaedic sales.

In his bio for Michelle’s Bachelorette season, Clayton described his “perfect woman” as someone who is “funny, independent, intelligent and athletic enough to join him at the gym for a workout.” “Clayton is a Missouri thoroughbred who has it all – good looks, a great job and a wonderful family,” his bio read. “The only thing missing is the perfect woman with whom to share his life. His dream woman is funny, independent, intelligent and athletic enough to join him at the gym for a workout. He wants to find something truly special and is willing to put in the hard work to find love that will last forever. Clayton is so excited to meet Michelle and loves that she has a passion for her career. His mom is a teacher just like Michelle, and he finds it impressive that she’s made this journey work without having to take time away from her students. Clayton truly believes that Michelle could be the perfect match for him. Will they hit it off?”

For his fun facts, Clayton listed the following:

– Clayton had a mohawk in college.

– Clayton’s rapping alter ego is named Clay-Doh.

– Clayton would love to own multiple gyms

The Bachelor airs on Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC and is available to stream on Hulu. Here’s how to watch it for free.

Image: Courtesy of Penguin Books.

To get more of an inside scoop, check out Los Angeles Times writer Amy Kaufman’s book, Bachelor Nation: Inside the World of America’s Favorite Guilty Pleasure, for a deep dive into the Bachelor franchise. The book uncovers the secrets of Bachelor Nation, from how much the Bachelor and the Bachelorette are paid to the rules contestants have to follow, that producers don’t want fans to know. It’s a must-read for any Bachelor Nation member.

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