Mel Owens opens up about ex-wife's 2020 divorce on The Golden Bachelor premiere

The Golden Bachelor star Mel Owens used the season premiere to reveal a personal hardship: his ex-wife filed for divorce in 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic. The 66-year-old retired NFL linebacker described the split after nearly 18 years of marriage to Fabiana Pimentel as a period of upheaval that left him focused on his two sons while navigating life in the public eye.

On the Sept. 24 debut, Owens recalled that his father’s death in 2020 was followed by the dissolution of his marriage, with his wife pursuing another relationship. "In 2020, during Covid, my Dad died. And then my wife filed for divorce. She had found someone new. I was shocked," Owens said. "It’s heart-wrenching. I mean, it’s the toughest thing I’ve ever gone through. In the quest for love, along the way, you’re gonna get knocked down even sometimes when it’s unexpected. But you have to get back up and try to find it again. Since the divorce, I haven’t really dated. I had to stay focused on my kids." Owens and Pimentel were married for nearly 18 years and share two sons.

Even with the split, Owens said he wants happiness for his ex-wife and acknowledged that she may or may not watch the show. "But, you know, I’m never going to get in the way of someone’s happiness." He added, "If you want to find somebody else in a different phase in your life — it hurts — but I can’t get in the way of your happiness. And what’s your happiness may not be my happiness." He described how he coped by living in the moment and prioritizing his kids: "You live in the moment. Plus, I had kids, so I had to think about them before me. So that was the main focus. And there were younger kids at the time — not infants, but teenagers. I let things work itself out, and it did. And have patience and understanding." Owens also noted that his ex-wife may not be watching, but his two sons have teased that she might be peeking, adding a light-hearted note to a difficult chapter.

The premiere also touched on the dating pool dynamics that have followed Owens into the season. He previously acknowledged that he asked producers to limit the pool to women under 60, telling a podcast that he described a range of 45 to 60 as "just being honest." In the backstage exchange captured on the podcast, the executive producer reportedly said, "Oh Mel, you can’t, you know, this is not the ‘Silver Bachelor.’ It’s the ‘Golden Bachelor.’" Owens recalled, "But they’re going to be hot, don’t worry about it. Don’t worry about it." He later explained those remarks to Fox News Digital, saying he apologized when he met the women on the first night. "I had been married for 25 years and all my experiences at that time were just with my wife and the friends that we had. So I hadn’t experienced anybody outside of my wife. But again, it was unfair, and I apologized and went forward and asked them to let me earn it back and, hopefully, I did on the season."

In the months that followed, Owens has framed his dating stance as evolving. He has suggested there is no fixed age cap on love, a stance at odds with earlier comments that drew attention from fans and media alike. The season’s conversations around age, parenting, and reconciliation highlight the tension at the center of a show built around late-life romance. Owens’ openness about his divorce, his dedication to his children, and his willingness to engage with questions about age and compatibility illustrate how personal history and public spectacle can intersect in Culture & Entertainment coverage. As the season unfolds, viewers will see how his past informs his pursuit of connection while navigating the realities of co-parenting and the scrutiny that accompanies reality television.