Why Did Dale & Clare Break Up After The Bachelorette? He Was Accused of Cheating With Another Bachelor Nation Star
Jason Pham
Five years after his whirlwind engagement to Clare Crawley on The Bachelorette Season 16, Dale Moss is back to Bachelor Nation as a contestant on Bachelor in Paradise Season 9. But why did Dale and Clare break up in the first and what happened behind the scenes in their relationship to cause their split? He was accused of cheating with not only one but two reality stars, including another member of Bachelor Nation.
Clare and Dale met on The Bachelorette Season 16, where she was the lead. They got engaged in Episode 4 of The Bachelorette Season 16 after Clare realized that she was only interested in Dale and gave him her final rose at a special Rose Ceremony between just the two of them. Clare then left the show with Dale and was replaced as the Bachelorette by Tayshia Adams, a contestant from The Bachelor Season 23 with Colton Underwood.
“I am so far in love with Dale. We have this connection where it feels like I’ve known him forever. It’s that intangible chemistry that you just can’t make up and you can’t replace. It’s something that is so rare to feel so connected to someone when you’ve only known them for such a short period of time,” Clare told producers before her exit.
Clare and Dale’s relationship seemed like a match made in Bachelor Nation heaven… until three months later when news broke that they had ended their engagement. So why did Dale and Clare break up from The Bachelorette? Ahead, we revisit the messy cheating rumors that Clare may or may not have confirmed.
Why did Dale and Clare break up after The Bachelorette?
Clare and Dale first split in January 2021, three months after their engagement aired on The Bachelorette Season 16. “I wanted [to] share with you all that Clare and I have decided to go our separate ways,” Dale wrote on his Instagram at the time. “We appreciate the love and support we’ve received from so many people, but this is the healthiest decision for both of us at this time.” He continued, “We strongly believe in leading with love and always remaining true to oneself – something our families have taught and instilled in us throughout our lives. We only hope the best things for each other.”
Clare, for her part, accused Dale of releasing a statement on her behalf. “I was made aware of a ‘mutual’ statement at the same time you all were, so I’ve needed some time to really digest this,” she wrote in her own Instagram post. “Speaking for myself, my intentions with this relationship have always been very clear, so the truth is I am crushed.” A source told People at the time that Clare was “blindsided” by Dale ending their engagement.
“Clare feels blindsided by the split. She genuinely thought they could make things work and after everything she’s been through, she can’t believe she’s in this place again,” the insider said.
A month later, Clare and Dale were seen back together. They celebrated their one-year anniversary in July 2021 before ending their engagmeent a second time in September 2021. “It was mutual. It happened two weeks ago,” a source told People at the time.
After their breakup, rumors swirled that Dale had cheated on Clare with Selling the City star Eleonora Srugo, whom he had been friends with before The Bachelorette. . “Dale told Clare that their relationship was simply business-related. Clare has always been skeptical,” a source told E! News at the time. “She never trusted the friendship and thought it was shady.” The source continued, “Dale would always reassure Clare that it was nothing serious, [but] multiple people have told Clare that Dale was parading around NYC with this girl. Clare would confront him about his relationship and tried to question him about it, but he would always deny it.”
There were also rumors that Dale had cheated on Clare with Abigail Heringer, a contestant from The Bachelor Season 25 with Dale Moss, who met her now-husband, Noah Erb, on Bachelor in Paradise Season 7. (Coincidentally, Noah was a contestant on The Bachelorette Season 16 with Tayshia Adams, who replaced Clare after she left the show to be with Dale.) A source told DeuxMoi at the time that a Bachelorette winner and a recent Bachelor in Paradise contestant “hooked up” with the winner and his Bachelorette were on a “break,” which many speculated to be Dale and Abigail. Another source also claimed that the Bachelor in Paradise contestant was from Matt’s Bachelor season.
“A Bachelor favorite hooked up with a Bachelor Nation recent “winner” who may or may not have been on a break earlier this year. One of them is on Paradise right now but producers won’t mess up her good girl edit,” the source said. A source also confirmed the rumor to Us Weekly at the tie, claiming that Dale and Abigail “hooked up” long before she was on Bachelor in Paradise and that Abigail had told friends about the hookup “under the impression that he and Clare weren’t serious” anymore.
Clare also fueled rumors that Dale and Abigail “hooked up” when she tagged Abigail in her breakup post in September 2021. “I hate that I even have to say this, but in response to all the questions that are coming my way right now,” she wrote. “I’m choosing not to speak right now on the details of my relationship, because at the end of the day anyone can put on an ACT or throw words together to form any narrative they want.” (Abigail later untagged herself.)
Another source for Us Weekly, however, denied that Abigail and Dale had ever been romantic and claimed they were just friends. “They met once at flag football in New York City that a bunch of Bachelor people attended. Everyone went to a bar after, they did not sleep together. He’s never cheated on Clare,” the insider said. “They never kissed or had sex. Dale is friends with Abigail.”
In a statement to People at the time, a representative for Dale denied that he had cheated on her. “Dale and Clare broke up in mid September when Clare was in New York City spending time with him,” the statement read. “Clare then chose to fly home to Sacramento and asked Dale to send her things. A couple of weeks later, Clare’s mother’s condition worsened, and Dale chose to immediately fly out to Sacramento to be with her.”
The statement went on to claim that Dale visited Clare in Sacramento before flying to Los Angeles for work obligation. He planned to retrurn to Sacramento but Clare had allegedly ghosed and blocked him. “Dale has chosen not to speak publicly regarding all these reports because he wants to give Clare and her family the respect they need during this difficult time,” the statement continued. “He wishes Clare nothing but the best, and he is keeping her and her family in his thoughts and prayers.”
Two months later, Clare shaded Dale’s acting debut in the movie, Love, Game, Match, and accused him of acting in their relationship. “For the record, you guys can stop sending me all the acting reel clips,” she wrote on her Instagram Story in December 2021. “I had a front row seat to that since day one.”
Clare went on to get engaged to entrepreneur Ryan Dawkins in September 2022. The two got married in February 2023 and welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Rowen Lily, via a surrogate in January 2024.
