Showing support. Rachel Lindsay’s ex Nick Viall came to her defense on Friday, October 4, after Colton Underwood seemingly dissed the Bachelorette star amid her feud with former pal Raven Gates.
As the revelation of Lindsay and Gates’ broken friendship made headlines, Underwood shared his two cents on the matter in the comments section of an Us Weekly Instagram post. “Shocker,” the 27-year-old NFL alum wrote on Thursday, October 3. “Rachel mad at another person… does she like anyone?”
Shortly after, Underwood clarified his original statement in another Us Instagram post. “I’m not weighing in on the Rachel/Raven drama. I could care less about that, not my business,” he explained. “What is my business is the countless number of times she’s spoke poorly of me… including that time she ran her mouth about me to Cassie … Funny thing is I have never met her.”
Viall, meanwhile, chimed into the brewing drama to reply to Underwood’s first comment: “Pretty sure [she likes] me.”
Nick Viall, Rachel Lindsay, and Colton Underwood
Lindsay, 34, opened up about her friendship with Gates, 28, during a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen. A caller asked her to explain what went wrong with Lindsay’s relationship with her “ex-friend.” Host Andy Cohen pressed further by asking what led to the pair “falling out.”
The former attorney revealed that she is no longer close to Gates, but refrained from disclosing the exact cause of their relationship’s demise.
“I can’t say. I promised I wouldn’t say,” Lindsay said on Wednesday, October 2. “But it was enough for me to not want to be friends with her anymore.”
Cohen, 51, then asked Lindsay whether she’s repaired her bond with the Arkansas native, to which she admitted “No.” The former Bachelorette also stated that they “never will be” close again.
Lindsay’s revelation on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen came weeks after she first confirmed the end to her friendship with Gates on “The Morning Toast” podcast. “All I’ll say is she knows what she did,” the Dallas native said on the September 11 episode. “You can ask her. Maybe you’ll have her on [the show] and she can talk about it.”
Lindsay and Gates met while competing for Viall, 39, on The Bachelor’s 21st season, which aired on ABC in 2017. Though neither lady won the “Viall Files” podcast host over in the end, they left the show closer than ever. Gates even supported Lindsay when she was cast as the first and only black Bachelorette lead in 2017, referring to her then-pal as “my day one, my soul friend, my person.”
“Not only is she making history by being the first African American female to have a bachelor/ette lead BUT she is MORE than that!!” Gates wrote at the time via Instagram. “To list all of her attributes and qualities that I love would be too long to type. America will soon find out that She IS laughter. She IS friendship. And she IS LOVE. I am ALWAYS in your corner Rach! I love you so much!! now go show America what they’ve been missing!!!! & bring home the Love of your Life!!!!!!”
The last picture they posted with each other on Instagram came from Lindsay and Gates’ trip to Bermuda in 2018. At the time, they uploaded similar shots of themselves smiling while sharing a floatie.
Gates, however, was noticeably absent from Lindsay’s July bachelorette party and August wedding to husband Bryan Abasolo. Astrid Loch, Kristina Schulman, Bibiana Julian, Alexis Waters and Whitney Fransway were present for both lavish affairs.
