Ricci Rivero, Leren Bautista reignite dating rumors after being spotted in a park in Laguna
Basketball player-actor Ricci Rivero and beauty queen-turned-politician Leren Bautista sparked dating rumors anew after being spotted on a "jogging date" in a park in Laguna.
In a report by PEP.ph, the two were seen walking at the University of the Philippines Los Baños' Freedom park at around 7:40 in the morning. The showbiz portal's informant confirmed the guy is Ricci after seeing the athlete remove his face mask. The rumored couple appears to be out for a morning jog with their matching sporty outfits.
Apart from this instance, Rivero and the Los Baños councilor once again ignited dating rumors when the two were spotted together in a mall. In the series of photos uploaded by several users on X (formerly Twitter) last Aug. 17, the UAAP star and Bb. Bb. Pilipinas Globe 2019 are seen checking out toys while wearing face masks.
To confirm that the people in the photo are indeed the rumored couple, one social media user posted side-by-side pictures of the people seen at the mall and those of Rivero and Bautista without face masks.
Speculations about their rumored romance began in May, a month before the basketball player's split with actress Andrea Brillantes.
At that time, eagled-eyed fans saw Rivero in the politician's Instagram post about her birthday, wherein the two were captured distributing food packs to constituents. Bautista also thanked Rivero for the visit.
"We appreciate your love and generosity to give back to our people. Mabuhay ka!" Bautista wrote in her post.
Bautista's office, however, released a statement clarifying that the outreach activity "is not an indication of a romantic relationship between them."
Rivero, for this part, confirmed his breakup with his ex-girlfriend Andrea on June 9. In a tweet published on that day, Rivero said that he is owning up to his "mistake" of not making his real relationship status public. He also told followers to “stop creating your own versions and dragging other characters into these false accusations.”