Didn’t age well? Tom Sandoval blew off Bravo’s questions about his close bond with Raquel Leviss — as the couple secretly had an affair.
During a new episode of Vanderpump Rules, which aired on Wednesday, April 26, a Bravo cameraman asked the TomTom co-owner, 40, directly whether anything “physical” ever happened between him and Raquel, 28.
“No. Nothing has happened between Raquel and I. Like, nothing,” Tom said while smiling in a confessional. “Like it wouldn’t happen between you know … me and Katie [Maloney].”
Earlier in the episode, Katie, 36, questioned Tom’s decision to spend time with the beauty pageant contestant when his then-girlfriend, Ariana Madix, wasn’t around. Tom, for his part, slammed the Utah native for keeping the onscreen focus on his personal life.
“It is annoying that Katie would say something like that. It is insulting to not just me but Ariana as well,” he told the cameras. “Raquel and I were not dancing all close in a dark corner of a speakeasy. A bunch of us just went to The Abbey. Two of those people happened to be Raquel and I.”
The Missouri native later called out Katie’s comments in front of their costars, saying, “Ariana is not very happy with you right now. Because you know exactly what you said. Apparently because me and Raquel went to The Abbey and apparently that is where our secret rendezvous is.”
In response, the “You’re Gonna Love Me” podcast host admitted she didn’t feel bad about doubting Tom’s commitment to Ariana. “I was trying to explain to Ally [Lewber] that Tom and Ariana don’t keep each other on leashes. They don’t have rules for each other in their relationship,” she detailed. “But also, my opinion of Raquel couldn’t be lower at this point so if Tom and Ariana do have an open relationship, then Ariana knows nothing about it.”
Later in the episode, Tom argued that Katie was spreading lies about him to their costars. “You don’t take any accountability ever, Katie,” he continued before addressing her March 2022 split from his business partner Tom Schwartz. “You shouldn’t be with someone for who you want them to be. You should be with them for who they f—king are.”
Sandoval and Raquel’s connection was a major topic of conversation during season 10 of Vanderpump Rules. As the model discussed her interest in Schwartz, 40, on screen, Us Weekly confirmed her offscreen affair with Sandoval in March amid his romance with Ariana, 37.
The California native issued a public apology after Ariana and Sandoval‘s split made headlines, writing via Instagram, “I want to apologize for my actions and my choices foremost to Ariana, and to my friends and the fans so invested in our relationships. There is no excuse, I am not a victim and I must own my actions and I deeply regret hurting Ariana.”
Katie, for her part, said she had no sympathy for Raquel amid the drama. “I gave you every opportunity. I was so kind to you when I didn’t have to be, but I was,” she said on a March episode of the “Give Them Lala” podcast. “The fact that you didn’t really step [up] or appreciate that or recognize that and you walked all over that and took a giant dump on it, you’re an idiot.”
The reality star noted that she could “confidently say ‘f–k you’” to Raquel, adding, “You deserve … what’s coming to you right now.”
Katie felt as if she “never stood a chance” trying to stay on good terms with Sandoval. “He was always going to find fault with me,” she explained about their friendship over the years, adding that the businessman “never” respected or acknowledged her during her marriage to Schwartz.
Earlier this month, Sandoval slammed his costars for using his cheating scandal as a topic on their various podcasts and interviews.
“Using all these things as content for their podcast. Fellow cast members are asking me all these questions, but you don’t want to know because you care about Ariana [Madix]. You want to know so you have more content for your podcast,” he said on the “Howie Mandel Does Stuff” podcast. “It is f—king disgusting to me. It is so gross. You are not someone who gives a flying f—k about Ariana. You are doing this for your own personal gain.”
At the time, the Tom Sandoval & the Most Extras frontman recalled having “dark thoughts” in the aftermath of the drama. “Close friends did see the issues,” he added, referring to his relationship with Ariana before their split. “I don’t know [why it blew up]. I just think it was really shocking. This happened when there wasn’t a lot going on [in the news].”
The Florida native, meanwhile, has not publicly addressed her ex-boyfriend’s claims about the end of their relationship. She previously took to social media to reflect on the people who supported her.
“Hi. where to begin? i want to express my most sincere gratitude for the outpouring of love and support i have received from friends, family, and people i’ve never even met in the last two weeks,” she wrote via Instagram on March 16. “When i have felt like i couldn’t even stand, you all have given me the strength to continue and seen me through my darkest hours. to say i have been devastated and broken is an understatement. however, i know that i am not in this alone.”
Madix continued: “So many of my closest friends are also grieving this loss right now and reeling from this betrayal on so many levels. i am so f—king lucky to have the best support system in the world and i hope i can repay every single person for the love you have shown me. what doesn’t kill me better run. love, ariana.”
Vanderpump Rules airs on Bravo Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
