The Bachelors Australia 2023 Winners Revealed

It's been a whirlwind of a year, with 2023 gifting us with not one, but two seasons of The Bachelors Australia. While the 11th season of The Bachelor franchise has been an incredibly short three-week run, it's still managed to squeeze in all that Bachie drama we know and love — oh, and some swoony-as-heck romances. The December run of The Bachelors Australia once again saw three men looking for love in Melbourne: Wesley Senna Cortes, Ben Waddell and Luke Bateman.

Going into the finale, there were five women, with Ben and Luke both choosing two finalists, while Wes decided to go against the grain by only taking one woman through to the finale (a first in the show's history). While we've gone through some emotional rose ceremonies, it's safe to say, that this one was perhaps the most emotional of all, leading to two happy relationships and one man walking away single.

Here's who won The Bachelors Australia 2023 and what exactly went down in the grand finale.

Coming into the finale, country boy Luke was torn between two women: Ellie and Lana.

Ellie and Luke had an instant connection, with romance oozing through their relationship. Meanwhile, his relationship with Lana was a little bit different, with the added responsibility of Luke becoming (in Lana's estimation) the stepfather to her child if he were to choose her.

But when it came to final the rose ceremony, viewers were shocked as the fan favourite, Ellie, exited the limo first — which has historically been a sign that they're about to be rejected.

"This is hard for me to say, but I've lied to you. I haven't been honest with you and it's been tearing me up inside," Luke said to Ellie at the final rose ceremony, her anxiety clearly written all over her face.

But we quickly realised this was just some good old-fashioned ad-break suspense. "I once told you that I've only ever felt this way towards someone twice in my life, I now realise that was a lie," Luke said. "Ellie, I've never felt the way I do for you, for anyone else."

It was then that Luke confessed his love for Ellie, saying that he'll spend "the next 60 years" trying to figure out what she sees in him. Of course, they capped it all off with a smooch.

While Luke didn't get on one knee and propose, he did gift Ellie with a ring that was not an engagement ring — an 18-carat yellow gold ring with 8 round diamonds on it from Larsen Jewellery. Not bad at all.

Unfortunately, that meant that his and Lana's chat was relegated to a park bench, where he sadly broke up with her.

Thankfully, it seems as though Luke and Ellie have saved the season this time round, with reports hinting that the two very much still together and happily in love.

Up next was Ben, with two women coming into the final rose ceremony — Mckenna and Angela.

Mckenna and Ben's relationship had an instant connection, with him instantly opening up to her. However, Angela believed she was the best match for Ben because of their chemistry.

But when it came to the final rose ceremony, it was Ange who walked through the chapel doors first — though this time, it wasn't for good reasons. "I love who you are, but I have to be true to myself and to you — my heart belongs somewhere else," Ben said. "I'm so sorry."

Later in the episode, we finally saw Mckenna and Ben unite for the final rose ceremony decision. Thankfully, it was all good news. "I haven't felt true love for a long time, but I'm falling into that place with you," Ben said to Mckenna. "I can't wait to start a future with you, if you'll have me."

Mckenna, already with tears in her eyes, responded quite simply: "I'd love to".

Again, there was no proposal for this one, but the two sealed everything with a kiss and left the chapel hand-in-hand.

Unfortunately, the two announced that they have since split up since the finale aired. "It is with sadness that I share things with myself and Mckenna didn’t work out the way we had hoped," Ben wrote in a statement on Instagram. "In the end the distance was difficult; we both had extended commitments overseas in different times zones, which was challenging."

Wesley broke The Bachelor rulebook this season and was the first man to ever send every other contestant home and only pursue one woman ahead of the final rose ceremony — Brea. So the real question during the finale wasn't so much if Wes would choose Brea, but if Brea would choose Wes.

The two had a few concerns that they needed to address, especially around their different backgrounds and upbringing. The Brazilian-born Bachelor is a theology student, a virgin, and someone who wants to wait until marriage before he has sex or moves in with a partner.

"I'm willing to compromise on things, but they're pretty heavily weighted compromises," Brea said in a confessional during the finale. "My compromise is no sex altogether, and I've accepted that, but I don't want to sleep in separate beds fullstop."

"If I back down on what I want and just give in, I'm going to be really disappointed in myself," she said in a confessional.

With all that in mind, the rose ceremony had perhaps the greatest weight than any others as it seemed as if Brea's decision could be swayed by what Wes was willing to compromise on, there and then.

"We have so much going against us. We come from completely different worlds. Totally different ways of dating," Wes said during the final rose ceremony. "And we live 2,400km apart."

"I know I have so much to learn when it comes to relationships," Wes said. "But if you are willing, I'd love for this relationship to be one that defies the odds."

Then, Wes finally asked the question: "Brea, would you like to be my girlfriend?"

But while the words were touching, ultimately, Brea rejected Wes. "You make me smile from ear to ear, but that's not enough for me right now," she told him.

"I've been seeing excuses and I haven't been seeing solutions for us from your end," she said. "I don't want to start a relationship on the foundation that I am compromising everything that is important to me in a relationship."

"All it would have taken was for you to meet me halfway, but I need to be clear that I am not closing the door on us, in fact, it's very much wide open," she continued. "I just hope you understand that I need to be firm on this."

But after an in-depth conversation about sleeping arrangements and inability to compromise, Wes shut down the chance of the two rekindling. "I appreciate you keeping the door open, but for my own sake, I'm closing the door."

It's a sad goodbye for these two, but honestly, we can't help but clap for Brea who advocated for herself in a really tough situation.

No, Wes and Brea haven't gotten back together. However, in an exclusive interview with Refinery29 Australia, Brea shared that the two are still amicably in touch and occasionally check in on each other, especially during the airing process.

But perhaps more importantly, Brea has revealed to us that she is actually exclusive with a man she met on a farm, who "wants to meet me halfway".

"I never thought I'd meet someone like this guy," Brea continues. "But I met someone in the middle of Queensland and he's a cowboy — just my type."

So! Cute!

We wish all the new couples the best in their future journeys.