Michelle Young says she actually wanted to send Clayton Echard home earlier during her The Bachelorette season but the show's producers wouldn't let her.
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Michelle told Clayton that "something was missing" between them, but she assured him, "You have checked every single box of all the qualities I'm looking for in somebody."
While Clayton was devastated to leave Michelle, Michelle admitted during the February 6 episode of "The Ben and Ashley I: Almost Famous Podcast" that she was over Clayton well before she actually dumped him.
Michelle appeared on the podcast alongside her best friend, The Bachelorette's Season 19 star Rachel Recchia, who competed for Clayton's heart when he starred on The Bachelor's 26th season in early 2022.
"I don't even know if Michelle knew who Clayton was during her season, if we're being honest," Rachel joked.
Michelle went on to confirm, "I'm not even going to lie -- and Clayton and I joke about this, and he knew I was going to talk about this or mention this -- but, like, when you go through the show, some people fall behind."
Michelle laughed and continued, "And Clayton and I really didn't know too much about [each other]. And I was not very chipper at that point in Minnesota about going on a date with him."
Michelle revealed, "I was really, really tired."
Michelle then dropped the following bombshell: "I was tired and I wanted to send him home earlier through the date than when I was allowed. And he knows this now."
Michelle presumably wasn't "allowed" to send Clayton packing sooner because ABC had already been eyeing him as the potential star of The Bachelor's 26th season.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOWThe former Missouri-based football player who worked as a medical sales representative at the time was very kind and vulnerable on the show, and he was the favorite bachelor among Michelle's fifth-grade students during a group date.
"I was happy for him, but I didn't know much about him," Michelle recalled of Clayton's surprising The Bachelor casting since he didn't even make her Final 4 suitors.
Michelle added how "timing" worked out in Clayton's favor for The Bachelor role, without going into further detail.
But Rachel confessed she was definitely surprised by the choice to have Clayton lead the franchise.
"Going into [The Bachelor], that's never who we thought... There were obvious frontrunners from [Katie Thurston]'s season, and Michelle's season hadn't even aired yet," Rachel said.
"So when we got the announcement, we didn't even see Michelle's Night 1. So that was all of us meeting him for the first time too."
Both Michelle and Rachel are currently friendly with Clayton again, and they recently posted playful TikTok videos with him that got Bachelor Nation talking.
When asked if there's any chance she and Clayton may get back together, given they're both currently single, Michelle promised Ashley that's never going to happen.
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Michelle's The Bachelorette season ended with her accepting a marriage proposal from Austin-based sales representative Nayte Olukoya, but they announced their breakup in June 2022.
Nayte admitted on "The Viall Files" podcast last year that he and Michelle began fighting shortly after their engagement aired on TV and he ultimately dumped her over the phone shortly after her birthday.
On Clayton's The Bachelor season, he dumped Rachel in second place -- at the same time he dumped Final 3 bachelorette Gabby Windey -- because he believed he was the "most in love" with Susie Evans.
Susie rejected Clayton's final rose, but they reunited in the real world and began dating after filming the show.
Clayton and Susie announced they were together on The Bachelor: After the Final Rose in March 2022. Clayton even moved to Virginia Beach to live with Susie, but they announced their split in September 2022.
Clayton is now living in Scottsdale, AZ, and Susie moved to Los Angeles, CA, last month.
Clayton was recently spotted on an apparent date with Colombian sports reporter Sara Cardona, who previously lived in Nashville but is currently working in Lexington, KY.
For Rachel's part, she got engaged to Tino Franco at the end of her The Bachelorette season last year. However, Tino cheated on Rachel and so they were already broken up by the time they filmed After the Final Rose.
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
