Married At First Sight groom Steven Danyluk has broken his silence in a no-holds-barred interview, lifting the lid on his failed relationship with bride Rachel and the controversy that followed.

Sitting down with Daily Mail Australia, the Sydney-based mechanic, 35, insists he was ‘genuine’ in the experiment and has slammed claims he ghosted his on-screen wife after filming wrapped.

‘I did not f***ing ghost Rachel,’ he said bluntly.

‘We stayed in contact. I flew to Melbourne to see her. There’s a lot of bulls**t online that just isn’t true.’

Steven entered the experiment as a self-confessed ‘hopeless romantic’, admitting he signed up on a whim after a late night at the pub.

‘I say dumb things, do dumb things – I thought maybe the experts could teach me something,’ he said.

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Married At First Sight’s Steven Danyluk has broken his silence in a no-holds-barred interview, lifting the lid on his failed relationship with bride Rachel and the controversy that followed

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Sitting down with Daily Mail, the Sydney-based mechanic, 35, insists he was ‘genuine’ in the experiment and has slammed claims he ghosted his on-screen wife after filming wrapped

Before the show, his life was ‘mundane’ – working as a mechanic, fishing on weekends and watching friends settle down.

‘I’m in my mid-thirties… everyone around me is having kids and moving on. You start thinking, I want that too.’

Steven was matched with Rachel in one of the season’s more grounded pairings, but their connection got off to an unusual start.

He recalled their wedding day nerves, a prank moment where he briefly thought a male guest was his match, and Rachel’s now-infamous giggle.

‘There was a lot of laughing… but it actually helped me. The nerves went away,’ he said.

While their early days showed promise – including sharing a bed on their wedding night and a relatively smooth honeymoon – cracks quickly began to appear.

A turning point came during intimacy week, when Steven refused to kiss Rachel during a key task.

Looking back, he admits it was a mistake.

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‘I did not f***ing ghost Rachel,’ he said bluntly. ‘We stayed in contact. I flew to Melbourne to see her. There’s a lot of bulls**t online that just isn’t true’

‘I should’ve just kissed her,’ he said.

‘But I didn’t want to be performative or fake it. There was so much going through my head.’

The moment left Rachel visibly upset – and marked the beginning of growing emotional imbalance in the relationship.

‘That’s when I realised she was more invested than I was,’ he admitted.

One of the biggest controversies came during the couples’ retreat, when a crude comment about their sex life was exposed in front of the group.

Steven has since apologised, calling it a ‘bad choice of words’, but insists the situation was blown out of proportion.

‘I said something dumb in private. That doesn’t give someone the right to stand up and announce it to everyone,’ he said.

The fallout deeply affected Rachel and put further strain on their relationship.

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Steven was matched with Rachel in one of the season’s more grounded pairings, but their connection got off to an unusual start

Despite their ups and downs, Steven insists their connection was real – and claims he did develop genuine feelings for Rachel.

He pinpointed homestays as the moment everything shifted.

‘I started thinking – I could do life with this woman,’ he said.

‘She had my back, even with my family. That meant everything to me.’

By Final Vows, both chose to continue their relationship – a decision Steven stands by.

‘I needed to see what it was like in the real world,’ he said.

Off-camera, however, reality quickly set in.

With Steven based in Sydney and Rachel in Melbourne, distance proved to be their biggest challenge.

‘MAFS isn’t real life,’ he said.

‘There’s no bills, no work, no responsibilities. Then suddenly you’re back in it and it hits hard.’

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‘I should’ve just kissed her,’ he said. ‘But I didn’t want to be performative or fake it. There was so much going through my head’

While the pair remained in contact and spoke regularly, Steven admits communication wasn’t perfect.

‘I could’ve done things differently. I regret that,’ he said.

When he eventually flew to Melbourne to see Rachel, the reunion didn’t go as planned.

‘The energy just felt off,’ he revealed.

After hours of emotional conversations, the pair mutually decided to end things.

‘She said, ‘Are we just delaying the inevitable?’… and she was right.’

Their breakup made the reunion even more complicated, with the pair initially planning to enter together before a last-minute change.

‘It was confusing. We weren’t together, but we still had each other’s backs,’ he said.

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Despite their ups and downs, Steven insists their connection was real – and claims he did develop genuine feelings for Rachel

Since leaving the show, Steven has been subjected to intense online trolling – including speculation about his sexuality and mental health.

‘People calling me gay as an insult – that’s what upset me,’ he said.

‘Even if I was gay, why is that funny? Why are people laughing?’

He also pushed back against claims he was ‘awkward’ or ‘on the spectrum’, blaming editing for shaping a misleading narrative.

‘I’m not as much of a dork as they made me out to be,’ he said.

Steven claims key moments of his relationship with Rachel were left out – including their growth as a couple and emotional scenes.

‘We both f***ed up at times. We worked on it. That development wasn’t shown,’ he said.

He also revealed tensions with the experts, particularly during the final commitment ceremony.

‘I felt like I was being forced into an answer,’ he said.

‘They put me in a position where I felt like the asshole.’

Despite their breakup, Steven insists there is no bad blood between him and Rachel.

‘We’re cordial. We still talk quite often,’ he said.

‘I’ve got nothing but respect for her.’

But he admits one question still lingers.

‘What if… what if I did things differently? Would we still be together today?’

Now focusing on personal growth, Steven says the experience has changed him.

‘I’ve learned I’m my own worst enemy,’ he said.

‘I was too worried about being liked instead of just being myself.’

And for future contestants, his advice is simple:

‘Speak your mind and be yourself – otherwise you’ll regret it.’

Rachel and Steven’s relationship timeline: What went wrong

Early cracks – honeymoon tears over ‘harmless’ joke

Their relationship didn’t exactly get off to a smooth start.

During their honeymoon, what should have been a light–hearted moment quickly spiralled when Steven made a comment about Rachel’s love of footy – leaving her visibly upset and fleeing their date in tears.

It was the first sign their communication styles were wildly different, with Rachel taking things to heart while Steven struggled to read the room.

Brutal rejection during Intimacy Week

Things took a devastating turn during Intimacy Week – a moment many insiders say defined their entire relationship.

In a vulnerable gesture, Rachel planned a romantic ‘Love Actually’–style moment, asking Steven for a meaningful kiss.

But instead of leaning in, he shut her down.

‘I can kiss you Rachel, I can kiss you but I’m not sure that it’ll make you feel something,’ he admitted, confessing he felt more like they were ‘friends’ than lovers.

Rachel was left humiliated, storming off in tears as the reality of their disconnect hit hard.

‘We were all rooting for them’ – early promise

Despite the setbacks, the pair initially showed real promise.

At their first Commitment Ceremony, they appeared completely smitten, bonding over shared experiences and a similar sense of humour.

‘I really like Steven… I will tell you every freaking day if I have to,’ Rachel gushed.

At the time, they were seen as one of the experiment’s most genuine couples – a stark contrast to the chaos unfolding around them.

Retreat drama brings them closer – then blows up

Ironically, one of their strongest moments came during one of the season’s most explosive group settings.

At the couples retreat, Rachel was left humiliated after a crude comment about her intimacy with Steven was aired in front of the group.

But rather than tearing them apart, it initially brought them closer.

Rachel later revealed Steven ‘had her back’ during the fallout, strengthening their bond at the time.

However, the situation also exposed deeper issues around trust, communication and how they handled pressure from others.

The underlying issue – friendship vs romance

Throughout the experiment, one theme kept resurfacing – Steven wasn’t sure if the spark was truly there.

While Rachel appeared all–in from the start, Steven repeatedly questioned whether their connection was romantic or simply platonic.

That imbalance became the quiet tension running through their entire journey.