Claire Allegedly Called Clayton This Name After Their Fight on ‘The Bachelor’—Here’s What Happened

  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

If you’ve watched the new season of The Bachelor, you may want to know more about Claire from The Bachelor 2022 and what happened between her and Clayton that didn’t make it on TV.

Claire was one of 30 contestants on The Bachelor season 26 with Clayton Echard. Clayton, a 28-year-old medical sales rep from Columbia, Missouri, was a contestant on The Bachelorette season 18 with Michelle Young, where he was eliminated in eighth place. Clayton was announced as the season 26 Bachelor in November 2021, however, photos of him filming The Bachelor leaked in September 2021, a month before Michelle’s Bachelorette season even premiered.

More from StyleCaster

According to Reality Steve, several contestants from The Bachelorette season 17 with Katie Thurston were on the short list to be the next Bachelor, such as Greg Grippo and Andrew Spencer, but ABC chose Clayton for his story. “Clayton stood out right off the bat,” a source told Us Weekly at the time. “Producers ended up going with him because they believed he was the best fit for the role. They wanted to switch things up and go with someone new and someone who hasn’t been in the spotlight yet.”



Watch ‘The Bachelor’ $6.99+


Buy Now

In an interview with Good Morning America in November 2021, Clayton confirmed that he found love on The Bachelor season 26. “I did find love, and I was a little skeptical going into the whole journey but I’m so pleasantly surprised that things worked out much different than what I had thought,” he said. “I’m just so excited to watch it back and have everyone else watch it as well.” Clayton also told Good Morning America that came into The Bachelor with a “checklist of sorts” but but the women surprised him when “they brought all of that and so much more.”

Click here to read the full article.

So who is Claire from The Bachelor 2022 and what happens between her and Clayton? Read on for the alleged name Clare called Clayton during their fight on The Bachelor and what went down that wasn’t seen on TV. (For more Bachelor 2022 spoilers, click here.)

Who is Claire from The Bachelor 2022?

Claire, "The Bachelor" 2022
Claire, "The Bachelor" 2022

Who is Claire Heilig from The Bachelor 2022? Claire is 28 years old and is from Virginia Beach, Virginia. Her Instagram handle is @claireheilig. In her Bachelor bio, Claire described herself as “charming, outgoing and unapologetic.” “Claire is a charming, outgoing and unapologetic woman with a big personality. She grew up quickly as a single mother but credits her son as her greatest achievement,” her bio read. “Claire is ready to take a chance on finding love again without the distractions of life and work. She is looking for her soul mate – someone who is supportive and doesn’t hold her back. At home, you can find Claire at girls’ night singing along to country music, trying out a new restaurant or enjoying a bonfire. She’s also hoping for more babies in the future!”

For her fun facts, Claire listed the following:

• People who don’t wear deodorant make Claire angry.

• Claire loves ranch dressing with her buffalo wings. • “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” is one of Claire’s favorite movies

What is Claire’s job?

What is Claire’s job? Claire lists her job on The Bachelor as “Spray Tanner.” She works as the Regional Director of Cosmetics at Anne Arundel Dermatology Virginia, according to her Linkedin. She’s held the role since February 2021. Before that, Claire worked as a Sales Representative at Pan-Am Dental and a Server at The Melting Pot. At the time she was cast on The Bachelor, Claire listed her job on her Instagram bio as a Cosmetic Dermatologist and Spray Tan Artist with Island Toned, a spray tan salon in Virginia.

What happens to Claire on The Bachelor 2022?

What happens to Claire on The Bachelor 2022? Claire was the second contestant eliminated on The Bachelor season 26 after Salley Carson, a 26-year-old from Charlottesville, Virginia, who self-eliminated before the Night One limo entrances after producers learned that she had been engaged a month before Clayton’s Bachelor season started filming.

Claire was eliminated during the Night One cocktail party before the First Rose Ceremony after she and Clayton get into an argument over her behavior. Earlier in the night, Claire, who took a shot with Clayton for her limo entrance, eat chicken wings before they’re interrupted by another contestant who wanted one-on-one time with Clayton. Claire, who is drunk, tells the other contestant to wait and criticizes Clayton for feeling stressed as the other contestants waits nearby. Clayton then ends his time with Claire early to talk with the other contestant. When Claire returns to the Bachelor Mansion with the rest of the cast, she tells them about how Clayton isn’t her “person” and how he’s “too nice” for her. She also jokes that she hates him, which leads Serene to tell Clayton about what Claire said. Clayton then confronts Claire, who denies saying that she hates him but confesses that she doesn’t think they’re a match. Clayton then sends home Claire, making her second contestant eliminated on his Bachelor season. According to Reality Steve, Claire calls Clayton a “pussy” after she’s eliminated, which wasn’t aired.

SPOILER: Who is The Bachelor 2022 winner?

Susie, Rachel, "The Bachelor" 2022
Susie, Rachel, "The Bachelor" 2022

Who is The Bachelor 2022 winner? The winner for The Bachelor season 26 with Clayton Echard hasn’t been confirmed yet, but Reality Steve reports that the final three are Susie Evans, a 28-year-old wedding videographer from Virginia Beach, Virginia; Rachel Recchia, a 25-year-old flight instructor from Clermont, Florida; and Gabby Windey, a 30-year-old ICU nurse from Denver, Colorado. A Reddit post by @workingbach13 in December 2021 theorized that the winner was either Susie or Rachel because they both followed Cary Fetman on Instagram. Cary is the Bachelor franchise’s stylist and costume designer who often styles the lead and the last two contestants for the Final Rose Ceremony.

The post speculated that Susie could’ve won Clayton’s Bachelor season because she was the first of the final three Bachelor contestants to return to social media, which has been consistent with past Bachelor and Bachelorette winners. Susie’s family and friends also follow Clayton on Instagram. A fan account has also posted an alleged screenshot of Susie commenting heart eye emojis on one of Clayton’s recent Instagram photos, which he liked. Susie also received the Pretty Woman date—a.k.a. a date where the lead and the contestant go on a shopping spree—in Vienna, Austria, in week seven, which has been indicative of other Bachelor and Bachelorette winners who have had similar dates, such as Rachel Kirkconnell from The Bachelor season 25 with Matt James; Hannah Ann Sluss from The Bachelor season 24 with Peter Weber; Becca Kufrin from The Bachelor season 22 with Arie Luyendyk Jr.; and Bryan Abasolo from The Bachelorette season 13 with Rachel Lindsay. Reality Steve also hinted in a tweet in November 2021 that there’s evidence that Susie won Clayton’s Bachelor season. “Do I post pics of Susie from Clayton’s season out last night so the subsequent dissection of the pics, freak out, and speculation from the fans can commence?” he tweeted.

The post, however, also speculated that Rachel could’ve won Clayton’s Bachelor season because she returned to social media at the exact time Clayton did. Rachel’s mom also followed Clayton on Instagram but unfollowed him when filming ended. Rachel Clayton also both liked the same Instagram photo of The Bachelor host Jesse Palmer 20 minutes after it was posted, even though Rachel doesn’t follow Jesse on Instagram. Rachel was also the only contestant from Clayton’s final three that liked season 18 Bachelorette Michelle Young’s first photo with her winner, Nayte Olukoya, which Clayton also liked.

It hasn’t been confirmed whether Clayton and his Bachelor winner are engaged, but if he did propose, it’s almost certain that the ring was designed by Neil Lane, a celebrity jeweler, who has created engagement rings for The Bachelor, The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise since 2008. In a 2016 interview with Entertainment Weekly, former host Chris Harrison revealed that Bachelor Nation couples have to stay together for a certain amount of time, otherwise they have to return the free engagement ring to Neil Lane. “There’s some rule, after a certain number of years, you get to keep it anyway,” he said. “But after months… it goes back.”

Lane told StyleCaster in 2016 that he doesn’t know where the rings go, but that he designs them with the hope that the couple to stays together. “I make rings hoping that people stay together forever, but after they get the ring, I don’t have a say in it, and what happens after that, I don’t know,” he said. “Where the ring goes, I have to say, I don’t really know. I just say it goes to ring heaven.”

Who is The Bachelor 2022, Clayton Echard?

Clayton Echard, "The Bachelor" 2022
Clayton Echard, "The Bachelor" 2022

In case you didn’t know: Clayton Echard is The Bachelor 2022. Clayton, a 28-year-old medical sales rep from Columbia, Missouri, was a contestant on The Bachelorette season 18 with Michelle Young. He was eliminated in week six in eighth place. He was sent home after a One-on-One date with Michelle, who told him that there’s “something missing” between them. “I just want to find love so badly,” he said in a confessional interview after his elimination. “And have a family. And start that chapter of my life. I want it more than anything else. I’ll do whatever it takes to get there. Whatever it takes.” After his elimination, Clayton received a letter from Michelle’s student, who cheers him on. “This just shows me I want kids one day,” Clayton said as he read the letter. The episode also shows a producer asking the student what should be next for Clayton, to which the student says, “He’ll be the next Bachelor.”

So who is The Bachelor 2022, Clayton Echard? According to his Linkedin, Clayton graduated from the University of Missouri, Columbia, in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in health professions and related clinical sciences. He’s also set to earn a Master of Business Administration in health and healthcare from Southeast Missouri State University in 2023. Clayton has worked a sales representative at Stryker, a medical devices company, since January 2018. He was hired in 2016 as a sales associate.

While at the University of Missouri, Clayton was a division 1 collegiate athlete for the university’s football team, the Missouri Tigers. After graduation, he was a professional NFL player for the Seattle Seahawks from August to September 2016. “After outperforming 4 other tight ends on a tryout basis with the Seattle Seahawks, I signed on as a free agent. While there, I practiced daily with the team and played in 4 preseason games. I made it past the first round of cuts, however, I was not able to make the final roster. Nonetheless, it was a unique experience that I was blessed to be a part of,” Clayton’s Linkedin reads. According to his Instagram, @claytonechard, Clayton is also a former freestyle rapper and refers to himself as a “washed-up athlete.” He confirmed that his current industry is still orthopaedic sales.

In his bio for Michelle’s Bachelorette season, Clayton described his “perfect woman” as someone who is “funny, independent, intelligent and athletic enough to join him at the gym for a workout.” “Clayton is a Missouri thoroughbred who has it all – good looks, a great job and a wonderful family,” his bio read. “The only thing missing is the perfect woman with whom to share his life. His dream woman is funny, independent, intelligent and athletic enough to join him at the gym for a workout. He wants to find something truly special and is willing to put in the hard work to find love that will last forever. Clayton is so excited to meet Michelle and loves that she has a passion for her career. His mom is a teacher just like Michelle, and he finds it impressive that she’s made this journey work without having to take time away from her students. Clayton truly believes that Michelle could be the perfect match for him. Will they hit it off?”

For his fun facts, Clayton listed the following:

– Clayton had a mohawk in college.

– Clayton’s rapping alter ego is named Clay-Doh.

– Clayton would love to own multiple gyms

The Bachelor airs on Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC and is available to stream on Hulu. Here’s how to watch it for free.



Watch ‘The Bachelor’ $6.99+


Buy Now

"Bachelor Nation" by Amy Kaufman
"Bachelor Nation" by Amy Kaufman

Bachelor Nation by Amy Kaufman

Buy: ‘Bachelor Nation’ by Amy Kaufman $13.89

To get more of an inside scoop, check out Los Angeles Times writer Amy Kaufman’s book, Bachelor Nation: Inside the World of America’s Favorite Guilty Pleasure, for a deep dive into the Bachelor franchise. The book uncovers the secrets of Bachelor Nation, from how much the Bachelor and the Bachelorette are paid to the rules contestants have to follow, that producers don’t want fans to know. It’s a must-read for any Bachelor Nation member.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

New Entertainment Newsletter
New Entertainment Newsletter

Best of StyleCaster