F***, we were very, very serious about the competition," Romel tells New Idea.
"Honestly, we gave it more than and as much as we could.
"It was a lot of sleepless nights. We were up training, and training, and training.
"The further we got, the hungrier and the more passionate and the more obsessed we became."
Romel even admits he can see a similarity between himself and season villains Josh and Austin.
"I do see similarities in them that were there when I was a lot younger," he says.
"Passionate, ruthless, hungry. Nothing is going to stand in my way. If you stand in my way, I was going to bulldoze you over. I love confrontation."
For more reality TV goss, listen to the newest episode of reality TV podcast Real Talk with Holly & Ali below.