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Matt James and Rachael Kirkconnell‘with Bachelor the love story was a journey – on and off screen.
ABC subsequently named Matt as the host for season 25 in June 2020 revealing that the series received a record number of entries for contestants. Among the 38 women who had the opportunity to meet Matt was Rachael, a graphic designer from Georgia. Although it did not receive the desired increase in first impression (Abigail Heringer did), she caught Matt’s eye the first night. (Season 25 Bachelor filmed at Nemacolin Resort in Fall 2020 and premiering in January 2021.)
While Matt and Rachael have been dropping L-bombs on the show, she’s been making headlines for her past racially insensitive actions, including photos of her at an “Old South” themed party in 2018. The controversy escalated after that Chris Harrison fans asked for it to have “grace” for Rachael how they went through the scandal. The Georgia native broke her silence in February 2021, two days after interviewing the host and more than a month after she first came under fire. Rachael’s mother, Kim Kirkconnell, also she was defending her daughter and hinted at how the situation might affect their potential happy ending.
“If he chooses Rachael and stands by her, then you know Matt really loves her,” Kim said Sun. “If he chooses Rachael and then leaves her, it wasn’t like that and there’s someone else there for her.”
During The Bachelor: After the Last Rose in March 2021, fans learned that Matt and Rachael had quit during the show’s broadcast. A month later, the two rekindled their relationship. Matt and Rachael dated for four years before him announced their separation in January 2025.
Check out the complete timeline of Matt and Rachael’s relationship:
