REALITY TV NEWSBachelor Nation Drama: Courtney Robertson Confronts Trista Sutter for Not Giving Her the 'Time of Day' After Ben Flajnik Split
Courtney Robertson and Trista Sutter's feud reaches new peak in a fiery confrontation.
Aug. 13 2026, Updated 6:26 a.m. ET
Bachelor Nation is making headlines once again as the long-standing feud between Trista Sutter and Courtney Robertson resurfaces.
The pair have over a decade of history tied to the franchise. Sutter was the star of the very first season of The Bachelorette, while Robertson won Season 16 of The Bachelor and got engaged to the show's lead Ben Flajnik.
Trista Sutter and Courtney Robertson Fueled Feud With Face-to-Face Confrontation
Courtney Robertson said Trista Sutter treated her 'like s---.'
Their bad blood seemingly began after Robertson and Flajnik split, when Sutter made a social media post mocking her.
Referencing their past conflicts, the two attempted to discuss the issue during a conversation on the “Almost Famous” podcast on Monday, August 10.
“So many people reached out to me to support me. You didn’t give me the f—--- time of day,” Robertson said to the 53-year-old.
“[Bachelor Nation host] Chris Harrison was there, and you treated me like s---,” she added.
While Sutter struggled to recall the public snub, she brought up an email she had sent the model, with the subject line “Olive Branch,” after learning about the 43-year-old’s book, I Didn’t Come Here to Make Friends: Confessions of a Reality Show Villain.
Alleging that while the “After Reality” host responded that she “fully accepted” her apology, she kept criticizing the Dancing with the Stars alum on several occasions in the years that followed.
Trista Sutter said she had a 'panic attack' while confronting Courtney Robertson.
“Years later, you’re on multiple podcasts [like] Zachary Reality saying that I would go to the opening of an envelope,” she said.
As the conversation kept deteriorating, Robertson eventually decided to end it and said, “I just have a lot of s— going on right now and this isn’t comfortable for me. I’ve been having panic attacks all day because of what I’m going through, personally,” referring to her ongoing divorce proceedings.
Sutter interjected, “This was not my idea, by the way, so don’t hold that against me.”
“I just wanted you to have fun here. … I’m shaking inside. I’m about to have a panic attack,” she added.
Their confrontation took place during Bachelor Nation's annual pickleball tournament in Lake Tahoe recently.
Pointing out that it was probably a poor setting for their intense back-and-forth, Robertson said, “I probably should have skipped the trip. This feels a little greedy to try to get us to sit here and hash it out.”
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Trista Sutter and Courtney Robertson Ended Their Conversation on a Bittersweet Note
Courtney Robertson said she and Trista Sutter have very different personalities.
As their conversation reached a dramatic climax, Sutter claimed that she feels “very maternal” towards her “Bachelor Nation family.”
“I can love everyone. We don’t have to like each other. You don’t have to like me,” she added.
“For whatever reason, you and I clash, and I think it’s because we’ve had two totally different experiences,” the mom-of-three replied.
“I am that girl who is a fighter, and I don’t want to seem like I’m hostile. I’m over it. I just think we’re two very different personality types,” she concluded.
Trista Sutter and Ryan Sutter got married in 2003.
Sutter, who married Ryan Sutter, the winner of her season of The Bachelorette in 2003, and shares two children with him, reflected on her conversation with Robertson just two days later with Bob Guiney on the “Almost Famous” podcast.
Breaking down in tears, she told him, “I don’t like conflict.”
“I’m shaking now, and I was shaking then. My stomach’s in knots,” she added.
“I wanted my hurt to be heard, and I wish I would have just put that aside and started with love,” she admitted, before adding, “I just wish I would have started with that.”
