Who Is Adan Banuelos, Bella Hadid's Boyfriend and Professional Horseback Rider?

The model and the cowboy actually have a lot in common.

Who is Adan Banuelos, Bella Hadid's Boyfriend and Professional Horseback Rider?
(Image credit: Instagram: @bellahadid/@ab_performancehorses)

Shortly after Bella Hadid decided to ditch the Paris Fashion Week runway in favor of a Texas equestrian competition, fans started speculating about the model's rumored new beau. So, who is Bella Hadid's boyfriend? Turns out, he's a cowboy.

In February, Hadid seemed to publicly confirm her relationship with Adan Banuelos, a professional horseback rider. On Valentine's Day, the model posted a photo of the pair lovingly looking into each other's eyes in a since-vanished Instagram story.

"My valentine💌💋,” she captioned the photo at the time, as Yahoo! Sports reports.

Banuelos, 34, is a Mexican-American cowboy from Texas who, according to his website, specializes in “cutting horses"—a particular breed of competition horse specifically trained to separate a single cow from a herd.

Una publicación compartida por Adan Banuelos

A photo posted by ab_performancehorses on

Banuelos' father is also a cowboy and member of the National Cutting Horse Association Rider Hall of Fame. Banuelos often credits his father for his success—in one 2015 interview with Amarillo Globe-News, the rodeo star said: "When times were bad, he’s the first one to say, ‘You know, it’s OK.' He’s also what I would call a true horseman.”

Banuelos and Hadid were first spotted together publicly in October, 2023, when TMZ cameras caught the couple kissing, hugging, and holding hands at a stockyard in Fort Worth, Texas.

In early January, 2024, Hadid also started sharing pictures of herself and her own equestrian endeavors. In one Instagram photo showing the model wearing a cowboy hat as she hugs a horse, Hadid wrote: "Never stop trying new things. I feel lucky enough to have the opportunity to keep learning in life. ❤️Thank you Tito, I will never stop loving on you like this!"

A post shared by Bella 🦋

A photo posted by bellahadid on

On Feb. 16, 2024, the model also shared a series of photos from October, 2023, around the same time TMZ first reported she was dating Banuelos.

In the photos, Hadid poses with horses and friends before sharing a photo of her sitting next to Buenos as he stands near her, her hands on his hips as the couple look away from the camera. In a video in the same post, Hadid is seen reaching across a table set up in the middle of the stable to give her new beau a kiss.

"October 2023," Hadid captioned the post. "My 27th Birthday."

In other words, it's relatively safe to assume that the couple have been dating for some time.

A post shared by Bella 🦋

A photo posted by bellahadid on

In February, Hadid shared photos and videos of herself competing in a Texas equestrian competition. In the post, photos show her posing alongside her competition horse and the ring, while in a video fans can see the model in full-on horseback riding competition mode.

"Best boy!" Hadid captioned the post. "Qualified for our first finals together."

A cowboy falls in love with a model? We love this type of real-life rom-com!

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Danielle Campoamor
Weekend Editor

Danielle Campoamor is Marie Claire's weekend editor covering all things news, celebrity, politics, culture, live events, and more. In addition, she is an award-winning freelance writer and former NBC journalist with over a decade of digital media experience covering mental health, reproductive justice, abortion access, maternal mortality, gun violence, climate change, politics, celebrity news, culture, online trends, wellness, gender-based violence and other feminist issues. You can find her work in The New York Times, Washington Post, TIME, New York Magazine, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, TODAY, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire, InStyle, Playboy, Teen Vogue, Glamour, The Daily Beast, Mother Jones, Prism, Newsweek, Slate, HuffPost and more. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and their two feral sons. When she is not writing, editing or doom scrolling she enjoys reading, cooking, debating current events and politics, traveling to Seattle to see her dear friends and losing Pokémon battles against her ruthless offspring. You can find her on X, Instagram, Threads, Facebook and all the places.