Ant Middleton has broken his silence and revealed how he found out that he and his brother Dan were being disqualified from The Amazing Race Australia.
During the second episode on September 9th, we found out that the pair was eliminated before the second leg of the race.
“Overnight, due to the breach of the code of conduct, Ant and Dan have been removed from the race,” Beau said in a voiceover.
Find out what really happened below.
Why did Ant and Dan Middleton leave The Amazing Race Australia?
When the casting was initially announced in March, it was confirmed that the former SAS Australia instructor was competing with his brother, Dan.
However, a month later, the Herald Sun reported that there was a verbal altercation between some of the cast, which the network confirmed a day later.
The former SAS Australia instructor told Yahoo! Lifestyle how he found out about it.
“It’s such a bizarre situation, as I haven’t been privy to any information, as I wasn’t present when a situation unfolded with my brother, and due to confidentiality, the only thing the production could tell me is that our team couldn’t continue due to a situation that unfolded with my brother,” he explained.
“I respect the production’s choice to keep the edit minimal with our participation to protect their brand. Strange situation, but one that’s completely out of my control and had nothing to do with [me]!”
Previously, he also spoke with Pedestrian TV, but said he could not provide further details.
“Unfortunately, I’m not at liberty to disclose any information as I had absolutely nothing to do with this situation and due to confidentiality, they’re not allowed to tell me anything,” he said.
While other contestants have been promoting the show on social media, the brothers have not.
When asked if he was being prohibited from posting about the show or if he made that choice, he explained that he made that decision.
“Personal choice not to post as I’m extremely busy with other projects,” he added.
What have Luke and Scott said about it?
After the episode aired, Luke and Scott spoke to Confidential about the incident, which happened during a production break.
They explained that it took place when they chose to stay at a hotel, while other contestants “went out to explore the local town”.
“When the rest of the contestants returned later, Dan Middleton approached us six times, making remarks and gestures that we found homophobic, offensive, intimidatory, and disturbing,” they said.
“Each time he (Dan) came over to us, the encounters felt increasingly more aggressive. At one point, he was right up in our faces, surrounded by some of the other cast members, who seemed to us to be as uncomfortable as we were.
“At this point, Brendan Fevola physically stepped in, putting himself between us and Dan and trying to de-escalate the situation. Brendan did this more than once.”
They then confirmed that the pair were disqualified by the next morning.
Before the brothers spoke about it, it was reported that Brendan issued an ultimatum to the network – to disqualify Dan, or he walks.
“Network 10 takes the health, safety, and well-being of all contestants seriously,” a spokesperson from the network said a month after this year’s cast was announced.
“Following a breach of the production’s code of conduct by one contestant, on a day off during production, a team from The Amazing Race Australia was disqualified and swiftly sent home.”
Just before the season aired on September 8, executive producer Sophia Mogford told Mediaweek that the “breach of the code’s production… was dealt with promptly”.
“The Amazing Race is about what’s happening on camera. It’s about the cultural experiences that people are having and the race that they’re running. And it’s a very experienced team who look after it. And so any breach of conduct is taken very seriously,” she explained.
Share this post