Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss Shutterstock (2)
Not without regrets. Tom Sandoval opened up about what he would have changed when it came to his cheating scandal with Raquel Leviss — and subsequent split from Ariana Madix.
“Hindsight’s always 20/20,” the reality star, 40, told TMZ on Monday, March 27, before elaborating on the meaning behind the phrase. “Like, if you look back at a situation, you think of all the things you should have, would have done better.”
After Sandoval noted that “of course” he would have handled things better, he weighed in on the aftermath of the affair. “I just think it was really unexpected,” the Bravo star said about why the news received such widespread attention.
The Missouri native, who is a co-owner of two restaurants with Tom Schwartz, admitted that the drama has affected his businesses.
“Oh yeah, of course. It’s tough. I honestly don’t even want to comment on it, but it has been rough,” he added. “They say time heals all wounds, so we will have to see what happens.”
Us Weekly confirmed earlier this month that Sandoval and Madix, 37, called it quits after nearly a decade together due to his infidelity.
Tom Sandoval, Ariana Madix, Raquel Leviss MediaPunch/Shutterstock
Amid news of his romance with Leviss, 28, Sandoval broke his silence after Vanderpump Rules fans posted negative comments about his bars online, announcing he was tacking a leave of absence from his businesses. He issued a second statement amid backlash that his first didn’t mention Madix.
“I want to first and foremost apologize to everyone I’ve hurt through this process. Most of all, I want to apologize to Ariana,” he wrote via Instagram on March 7. “I made mistakes, I was selfish and made reckless decisions that hurt somebody I love. No one deserves to feel that pain so traumatically and publicly.”
Sandoval added: “I can only imagine how devastating this has been for Ariana and everyone around us. I feel really horrible about that. My biggest regret is that I dishonored Ariana. I never meant to disappoint so many people, including our loving families and friends.”
The former beauty pageant contestant, for her part, also took to social media to address Madix. “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,” she wrote via Instagram one day later.
Before the Vanderpump Rules cast filmed the season 10 reunion on Thursday, March 23, Leviss revealed that she made an attempt to speak with Madix on the phone.
“She didn’t receive it very well,” the California native told TMZ on Wednesday, March 22, before elaborating on her romance with Sandoval. “It started off as a friendship and turned into something more. We’re just trying to get through these next through steps and make amends and hear everybody out. I know a lot of people are angry. So just getting through these next few steps and not putting a label on anything. We’re just kind of taking a break for now.”
After coming face to face with Leviss and Sandoval at the taping, Madix threw some major shade at the couple.
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“I don’t know what they do,” she said in a video obtained by Page Six on Sunday, March 26, when asked her thoughts about her costars attending dinner together days prior. “At this point, I don’t care about anything that either of them does.”
