The Bachelorette 's Greg Grippo Says He Was 'Way Too Harsh' on Katie Thurston During Their Breakup
Greg Grippo is reflecting on the dramatic end of his relationship with Bachelorette Katie Thurston.
During an appearance on the Viall Files podcast Tuesday, the 28-year-old former Bachelorette contestant spoke to host Nick Viall about his heated and controversial breakup with Thurston — and what he regrets about how it all went down.
"I was obviously way too harsh on her in those moments in that room, but it was just the way that we were talking to each other in those moments. I wasn't communicating well at all," Grippo said. "My head was wrapped up in it not being [about] the show, which [was] what we were in. It's really hard to pinpoint it for me. I just felt like I couldn't read her in that moment, and it just didn't feel like we were on the same page."
Over the course of the season, Grippo emerged as the frontrunner in the competition for Thurston's heart until their messy and abrupt breakup following hometown dates. Toward the end of the episode, Grippo informed Thurston he was leaving the show after not receiving the reassurance he needed from her. He remained firm in his decision, even after Thurston chased after him.
At the time, Grippo said that he was "just so eager to try and get on the same page" with Thurston but it ultimately didn't come off that way.
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"I came off angry, I came off, again, a petulant child," he continued. "It was very immature for me and I never want people to try to justify how I acted, because you can't normalize that behavior, especially talking to a woman like that. It was hard to watch back and I was pretty ashamed of it all. And again, it's humbling to realize I need to step away from this and know that I can do so much better."
Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty (2)
Since their split, Grippo told Viall, 40, that he's done "a lot of reflecting" and "soul searching" about the experience. Looking back, Grippo said he's now realized that he and Thurston didn't have "the healthiest kind of love."
"Whether it was bonding with her over [the] loss of my father and really trying to feel connected in that way, especially because I just don't, you know, communicate what happened to me in the past to just anyone," he said. "It sucks because I did project so much on her in those moments."
He continued, "It wasn't healthy and you shouldn't rely on anybody for your own happiness. That, sadly, you know, [is] what I feel like I did at the end there, and I want to get into a place where I am truly happy [and] I don't need to depend on anyone else to be a healthy relationship."
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While it didn't work out between Grippo and Thurston, the former contestant expessed his well-wishes for Thurston and her now-fiancé Blake Moynes, saying he is "extremely happy for them.
"I really think they're gonna have a successful marriage," Grippo added.
During Monday's After the Final Rose special, Thurston confronted Grippo for the first time since their split and called him out for the way he "treated" her during their breakup conversation.
"The way you said that you are so in love with me. I filled a hole in your heart and the small second that things got awkward for you [and] uncomfortable, you ran. You're a liar," she said. "You did not love me. If you think that's love, you don't know what love is."
Grippo apologized to Thurston for his actions: "I wish I can go back then and change how I communicated my feelings. ... In that moment, my head was in just a million places at once. I truthfully really didn't want to leave in that moment. I didn't know what to do."
