The Bachelor alum Rachael Kirkconnell has thrown shade at ex-boyfriend Matt James by posting a hilarious new ad on social media.
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"Even though I don't have to worry about picking out the perfect dinner spot anymore, life can still get messy," Rachael, 28, says in a clear reference to her recent revelation on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast that she felt pressure to pick out great restaurants where Matt could film their dining experiences as a team of foodies and influencers.
(Rachael also revealed on "Call Her Daddy" in late January that she got emotional over picking a bad spot for dinner one night in Tokyo, which prompted a tense conversation that ultimately led to their split).
Rachael continues in her video ad, "But now, I have someone I can always depend on."
After Rachael's friend dramatically spills marinara sauce on the kitchen counter while making homemade pizzas, the tall, dark and handsome Brawny man enters the scene to clean up the mess.
"Someone strong, and reliable, too," Rachael quips.
(Rachael previously suggested that she couldn't count on Matt to attend friends' weddings or important events with her. Rachael also said Matt dragged his feet on proposing marriage, which robbed her of feeling secure in their relationship).
"So no matter what surprises come my way," Rachael continues, "Brawny is always going to be there."
Rachael then spills cheese on her phone as it's ringing off the hook with text messages and notifications in the ad.
This appeared to be another shot at Matt because once he had announced their breakup via Instagram on January 16, Rachael said her phone was "blowing up" with texts and calls from shocked friends and family.
According to Rachael, she was totally blindsided by Matt's breakup statement and had no say in it.
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"Brawny is always going to be there," Rachael boasts in the ad, as the rugged Brawny man wipes down her phone and hands it back to her.
The Brawny man proceeds to tell Rachael in a confident manner, "I got you."
"Thank you," Rachael replies, while smiling big and proudly holding up a glass of red wine.
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The ad quickly received over a million views, and fans praised and applauded Rachael for being "iconic" and showing her backbone in the comments.
The Bachelorette alum Kaitlyn Bristowe compared Rachael's comeback to former Vanderpump Rules star Ariana Madix's success following her headline-making split from Tom Sandoval, who had cheated on her with their co-star Raquel Leviss.
One fan also slammed Matt by commenting on Rachael's ad, "From scrawny to Brawny," to which the Brawny brand replied, "You got that right!"
Matt's The Bachelor season filmed in late 2020, and he was shown giving Rachael his final rose on the Season 25 finale that aired in early 2021.
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Matt's January 16 breakup post had read, "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. Shower our friends and family with kindness and love to comfort us. And remind us that our Joy comes from you, Lord."
Alongside the post, Matt had uploaded a photo from his The Bachelor season, when he and Rachael had met for the first time on Night 1 of filming at a resort in Pennsylvania.
Rachael told Alex Cooper on "Call Her Daddy" that she only discovered Matt's breakup announcement when her plane was taking off from Tokyo. At that moment, she lost service and essentially sat in the dark for hours until she landed home in Georgia.
Although Matt eventually deleted his odd breakup post, he chose to keep many videos featuring Rachael from their travels together pre-split on his Instagram account.
Based on Rachael's side of the story, Matt dumped Rachael because he didn't view her as his perfect person.
"He basically said that I have a hard time taking accountability and apologizing," Rachael claimed.
Rachael also said Matt was concerned about how emotional she got during challenging times.
"He said that, at the end of the day, there were qualities about me that he worries about having in a wife, like, at the end of the day, there are things we are not compatible with," Rachael alleged.
"[He said], 'I should want to propose to you. At this point in our relationship... I should be ready for that, but I'm not still. I still don't feel like I'm ready. I don't know if I ever see myself proposing to you. I can't actually see myself married to you.'"
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Rachael admitted she felt "pure shock" and "so much confusion" about Matt's decision considering he had been so vocal in the media about his desire to get engaged and start a family with her in the near future.
Rachael cried on and off during her chat with Alex and confessed, "I'm so mad at him, but I'm also still so sad and of course, like, I still love him. So yeah, just a lot of emotions to work through."
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"He is a good guy at the end of the day, but obviously he made a mistake [with that breakup post]," Rachael said, noting how Matt had apologized for his Instagram announcement.
"I think he regrets it... I probably wouldn't even be sitting here [single] if he didn't do that."
Rachael admitted at the time it's going to be difficult to completely move on in her life without Matt.
"I wish we could somehow be friends because he was my best friend... He has called me every few days to make sure I'm okay, but I told him, 'You don't need to do that... I'll be okay,'" she said.
When asked if she'd consider reconciling with Matt in the future, Rachael explained, "I don't think I can, which is sad. I don't think I can because when somebody says those things that he said... I think you have to call it quits."
Rachael also noted that while she forgave Matt for how he had handled their breakup, she doesn't think she can be with someone like that down the road.
"I felt like he disrespected me at the end of the day, doing that," Rachael shared.
"So it's one of those things where you have to stand up for yourself, even if you don't want to. Of course there's part of me that wishes we can get back together and pretend none of this ever happened, but that's not the case."
Rachael pointed out how "the right decision" for herself is to be on her own, especially because she thought she gad given 110 percent in the relationship and Matt didn't reciprocate.
"I do have an attachment to him and I do love him so much, but it's just one of those things where maybe in another universe we work out and things are okay, but it just really sucks to sit back and look at how things ended up for us. It's heartbreaking," Rachael concluded.
"What he did wasn't okay, and I just need to try to move on."
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
