The romance between Victoria SanJuan and Joe Bradley is heating up on Below Deck Mediterranean — but where do they stand now?
“Joe and I will always be cordial and will always be professional,” Victoria exclusively told Us Weekly on Monday, December 1. “But I don’t really consider him part of my friend group.”
Victoria hinted at what led to her falling out of touch with Joe.
“The men I keep in my friend group, I admire them because they’re more honest, have self control, hold themselves accountable and have respect — those kinds of qualities,” she noted. “So I wish him all the best. I think he is a lovely human but I think he has got a lot to learn from his mistakes — if he’s willing to learn from them.”
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The duo formed a connection when Joe joined halfway through season 10, when Victoria was still mourning the death of her ex-boyfriend Bon.
“It was interesting timing, when Joe and I met. It was 11 months after Bon’s passing and the one-year [anniversary of his death] was just about to happen,” she recalled. “So for me, I just wanted someone to be there for me.”
Victoria continued: “I just wanted that physical intimacy for a moment and just to really just let loose. He’s a charmer and he’s sweet but obviously he’s a bit of a player. That’s not really what I needed at that moment.”
Season 10 of Below Deck Med, which premiered in September, gave Victoria the chance to focus on herself after Bon drowned nearly a year prior — on her birthday. Victoria was candid on the show about the highs and lows that come with mourning a loved one.
“When Bon passed, it felt very public because he was loved by so many. But this was my story and I wanted to own it [on the show]. It was just such a big part of me,” she explained. “How I got into working on boats and how I even got to Below Deck — he was a big part of my story that way. So I wanted people to know about it because it’s a very lonely experience losing, like, a partner as a young person.”
Victoria was grateful for the chance to have a platform for the conversation, adding, “I just wanted [to be there] if anyone had that happen to them or they felt alone about it. I didn’t want them to feel alone, like the way I did. So if a story could just help someone — even just one person — it was worth it to me.”
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While reflecting on her own journey, Victoria opened up about how she is doing now.
“It’s taught me a lot. I’ve grieved hard because I loved hard. When you’re had time to heal and move on — and I still have my days for sure where I think about him a lot. But when you come to this place in your grieving journey, you learn to be grateful for them being there and for them not being there,” she explained. “A lot of people are afraid to admit that because they feel guilty admitting if life has gotten better or still is just as amazing after that person has left.”
She added: “That’s the hard part for people to accept that life can still just be as beautiful or as wonderful — even if that person’s not there anymore. That’s something that Bon really taught me is to fully run at life, embrace it and just really enjoy the hell out of it. So I thought it’s the best way to honor him is by moving on.”
Below Deck Med airs on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.
