TV & Movies

Dean Unglert Is Convinced Gabby Will Win Clayton’s Bachelor Season

Or else wind up as the next Bachelorette.

by Kadin Burnett
Gabby Windey accepting a rose from Clayton Echard on 'The Bachelor'
ABC/John Fleenor

Though she’s yet to land a coveted one-on-one date, Gabby Windey has been steadily making more of an impression on Clayton Echard throughout his Bachelor season. In the most recent episode, she won the Baywatch-themed group date challenge and scored some extra makeout time with Clayton; during the evening portion, she continued to impress him with her “goofy” side and ultimately won his group date rose.

There’s reason to believe she’ll be sticking around for the long haul, too. As numerous fans have pointed out, the trailer for the season shows Clayton telling two women he’s been intimate with them, one of whom appears to be Gabby. It’s unclear when exactly this conversation will take place, but it’s assumedly after Fantasy Suite dates. So it’s a safe bet that Gabby will at least make it to the final four. (Though it’s worth noting that Clayton refuted claims that the trailer spoiled his season in an interview with Bustle, insisting that the clip “showed hardly anything.”)

As for whether or not Gabby wins Clayton’s season, there aren’t many clues to be gleaned from her Instagram. She’s only posted a few times since the show premiered on Jan. 3, and none of the photos are very telling. She shared one picture of herself on a rooftop captioned, “kohls cash in the trash, here I come euphoria high,” and another of a pillow that has Clayton’s face printed on it, which she used as a prop during her limo entrance. “Is this seat taken?” the caption reads, a nod to the coy joke she made about sitting on the pillow during her entrance. More recently, she shared a shot from the Baywatch date captioned, “Bae watch.”

It’s worth noting that Gabby has had luck with men from Bachelor Nation before. She previously dated both Blake Hortsmann and Dean Unglert before any of them appeared on the Bachelor franchise. Her relationship with Blake was more casual. “We never actually went on a date, there was no drinks paid for, no dinner paid for,” Gabby explained on the Talking It Out podcast hosted by Mike Johnson and Bryan Abasolo. “Definitely no officially dating, no formal, no exclusivity, and again, a really long time ago.”

With Dean, it was more serious: they dated in college and have both said they were one of each other’s first loves. “I dated Dean over 10 years ago,” Gabby said on the podcast. “It was so long ago, it’s a distant past from my experience on The Bachelor, and Clayton and [my] story is very much it’s own thing.” However, she said she still considers Dean a friend.

Dean has been equally supportive — and according to him, Gabby could very well be the one to wind up with Clayton’s final rose. “Producers called me and were like, ‘Hey, we’re thinking of casting [Gabby] — what do you think of her?’” Dean explained on his Help! I Suck at Dating podcast. “And I was like, ‘Oh, she’s great. If she gets selected for the show, she’ll either win the show or she’ll be the next Bachelorette.’ And I firmly believe that.”