Clayton Echard officially named ‘The Bachelor’ for Season 26

Clayton Echard officially named ‘The Bachelor’ for Season 26

Life is nothing but roses for Clayton Echard now.

ABC officially has named Michelle Young’s ex as the next “Bachelor.” Echard, a candidate on the current season of “The Bachelorette” with Young, will lead Season 26 of the long-running dating show.

News broke in September that Echard, 28, was likely the next “Bachelor” when photos of him filming with a camera crew were leaked. Although Warner Bros., the studio that produces all of the “Bachelor” franchises had no comment on the casting at the time, a source close to the show told Page Six that ABC became interested in choosing a suitor from Young’s season after previous “Bachelorette” Katie Thurston’s exes Andrew Spencer, Michael Allio and Greg Grippo were taken off the short list

“The caliber of men who came on to Michelle’s season was incredible. Each guy was hotter than the next and so many of them treated her like a queen,” the insider said.

“There was so much excitement about a lot of them. Clayton was no exception.”


[embedded content]

The source added that Clayton — a former tight end for the Seattle Seahawks — “impressed everyone on set and is definitely a big upgrade from any of Katie’s guys.”

In October, Echard was photographed on a “Baywatch”-inspired group date at Oxnard Beach in California. Photos showed at least eight women donning the old TV show’s iconic red swimsuits while competing for one-on-one time with Echard.

Promotional poster for Clayton Echard's season of Echard is one of current “Bachelorette” Michelle Young’s exes.ABC

It’s unclear what activities the group had to participate in, but one woman scored some solo time with the new “Bachelor.”

Echard will get his second shot at love on reality TV in 2022 when his season premieres on Jan. 3.