New Bachelor Colton’s Ex Tia Isn’t Sure He’s Ready For A Serious Relationship

Even though it seems like a whirlwind from the outside, Colton Underwood's selection as Bachelor actually occurred months after his infamous breakup on Bachelor in Paradise. But even though time has passed, Tia doesn't think Colton is ready for a serious relationship. That's Tia Booth, whose on-again-off again romance with the former NFL player lasted through two seasons of television, including Becca Kufrin's season of The Bachelorette, right up until the pair ended things for good on Monday night's episode of BiP.

Just a day later in TV world, Colton was announced as the 2019 Bachelor, set to helm his very own season of the franchise. But the fact that her ex has actually had significantly longer than a day between his breakup and the start of this new chapter has done little to reassure Tia. As the Arkansas native told Entertainment Tonight in an exclusive interview filmed before the announcement:

"I mean, it was just about two months ago that I was telling him that he really needs to figure himself out before he can fully be with someone else. So if there's a chance that Colton is the Bachelor, I would hope that he is fully ready for that experience knowing that he wants to be engaged at the end of it. I don't know that he's ready. I don't."

And even though these thoughts were shared before he was officially chosen, they're even more true now. Tia knows better than anyone else how devastating Colton's indecision can be, and it's clear she's anxious to prevent other women from enduring the same heartbreak. The 27-year-old revealed to ET that she "cried every freaking day" of Paradise, and added: "I don't think Colton has bad intentions but I also don't think that he's necessarily ready for a serious relationship like I was. I mean, you could see that."

But for everything that the relationship put her through, Tia is still able to see its positives as well, and she's grateful for the closure that she got from Colton, at the very least. She shared:

"Honestly, during that breakup, I felt like I was consoling him because he was so upset and it bothered me to see him upset. And I was appreciative that he told me when he did. He knew that he wasn't giving me what I deserved and what I knew I was ready for. And all I could do in that moment was know that he fully tried. I feel like it happened exactly how it needed to so we could realize that we are not for each other and so we can both move on."

And yes, before you ask, she will indeed be moving on. Almost immediately after the announcement that Colton would be the 2019 Bachelor, Tia took to Twitter to clarify that she will not be appearing on Colton's season. Just because she feels positively enough about her ex to congratulate him on getting The Bachelor doesn't mean she wants to get sucked back into that whole mess again. "And NO I will NOT be a contestant on Colton's season," she tweeted on Sep. 4, "Lord bless."

After the rollercoaster of their six months together, the reality star has been clear that the best feeling so far has been putting the drama behind them. As Tia told People in a Sep. 5 interview:

“It’s a relief to close that chapter of my life. We’re in a good place. We’re in a solid friend zone. And it’s honestly nice to move forward instead of wanting something when it’s not there."

Tia has set the bar high here as far as maturity, so hopefully Colton and his dozens of future exes (remember, at the beginning of his Bachelor season, Colton will be dating dozens of women at the same time) can be just as civil with each other after their own televised breakups. Taking time to focus on himself and decide what he wants would be an excellent first step for Colton, so here's hoping that he takes the next few months until his season premieres to do just that.