Arie Luyendyk Jr. was taken aback by his bachelorettes on the first night of filming The Bachelor, and the meet-and-greet experience evoked a lot of emotion in the pro racing driver.

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"It was overwhelming at first," Arie, 36, said of dating 29 different women at once during a Tuesday appearance on Good Morning America.

"And I think that first night, I was just so nervous, and it was a long time since I had been on-camera before. So there was a lot of pressure, and it was just intense."

Arie's bachelorettes pulled out all the stops upon introducing themselves to him, with many ladies making fabulous first impressions and several appearing to crash and burn.

While Rebekah "Bekah" Martinez drove up in a '65 red-cherry mustang that made Arie's jaw drop, Ali Harrington asked Arie to smell her armpit to make sure she didn't have any body odor.

On whether Maquel Cooper's grand entrance worked for Arie in which she drove up to the Los Angeles mansion in a race car of her own, Arie said, "Yeah! I mean, yes. I thought that was super cool."

When Maquel stepped out of the race car, she removed her helmet and shook her super long, blonde hair like a female lead right out of an action movie.

"She's beautiful," Arie noted.

Rebecca "Becca" Kufrin's entrance included Arie getting down on bended knee with a ring box in hand. Becca had Arie repeat after her, "Are you ready to do the damn thing?"

And Kendall Long performed an original song for Arie at the cocktail party on her ukulele.

"It was hilarious. That's never happened before, and for me, you know, Kendall is so cute and so that was sweet," Arie revealed.

When asked whether a gesture like being given a "gratitude rock" made an impression on him, Arie replied, "It just makes that introduction really memorable. It makes that time stand out."

Tia Booth gave Arie a little wiener figurine to represent her hometown in Arkansas, and she told the Bachelor she hoped he didn't have a little wiener already.

At the time, the joke didn't seem to go over big with Arie, but he revealed on GMA, "That was so funny!"

"And it was so funny because those limo entrances are always really creative," he continued, "and for me, I'm standing up there, I'm like, 'Okay, you can do this,' and then she threw that joke at me and it went right over my head. And I was like, 'Wow.'"

Arie also called Bibiana Julian "spicy," saying she has "that Latin flair."

Arie is having a blast watching The Bachelor season back so far, but he admitted it's going to be tough watching the rest of the season unfold right along with the girl he picked at the end.

As for what surprised him the most when watching the premiere on TV, Arie said, "Just seeing the other end of things. For me, obviously, I'm having so many different great conversations. And obviously seeing the interviews all the girls did and the jokes I didn't get because I was so nervous -- just things like that."

Arie eliminated eight bachelorettes during Season 22's first Rose Ceremony, leaving 21 women in the running for his heart.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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