We’re going to talk about Victor running a new con on Claire to get back on her good side while still fully plotting a betrayal.
All right, so this week, Claire her grandma told Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott) that she wants nothing more to do with her grandpa Victor because of his plotting against Kyle Abbott (Michael Mealor). She has heard from her mom, Victoria Newman (Amelia Heinle), about all the times Victor interfered in her love life. It caused her problems and hurt her. Claire’s just not going to tolerate it. 
Claire Grace Newman Draws the Line with Victor
She realized Victor is not going to stop coming after Kyle Abbott. He isn’t going to stop trying to control Claire’s life. After finding out Victor was ready to pay Audra Charles (Zuleyka Silver) big money to seduce Kyle, and being unapologetic about his scheme, that’s it.
Claire told Nikki she is over it, and she’s going to cut Victor out of her life. Victoria warned her dad, Victor, that he was going to lose Claire over this Kyle stunt. He did seem to pause and kind of take it to heart. But we all know The Mustache always thinks that he’s right.
Victoria Newman’s Warning: Victor Risks Losing His Granddaughter
Now, what should happen is Victor should go to Claire and apologize. Victor should admit he was wrong for interfering in Claire’s love life. He should say he has learned his lesson and that he won’t do it again. But that’s not going to happen. I mean, it’s as likely as Phyllis Summers (Michelle Stafford) taking a chill pill.
Bottom line, it’s going to take a lot for Victor to regain Claire’s trust after this stunt he just pulled. Basically, Victor knows he went too far. He got caught and that he is about to alienate Claire and lose her. This is especially true after Victoria said that she almost ditched Victor for meddling in her love life all those times.
Can Victor Newman Regain Claire’s Trust?
So, he’s going to make, I think, maybe a grand gesture this week. Something to prove himself to Claire so he doesn’t lose her forever. But at the same time, I don’t believe for a second that Victor is really turning over a new leaf. He is not capable of admitting he’s wrong or learning from a mistake because he doesn’t admit that he makes them. However, I do think Victor may make this gesture, then backtrack, regroup, and lie low for maybe five minutes. Then start a whole new scheme to target Claire’s love life. 
Y&R Spoilers: Victor’s Grand Gesture or Another Scheme?
So it’s this Thursday, according to Young and the Restless spoilers, where Victor makes a decision that shocks people. I suspect he may give Kyle and Claire his blessing – sort of. That’s the only way for Victor Newman to keep Claire in his life.
He’s got to pretend to accept Kyle, but come on, he’s Jack Abbott’s (Peter Bergman) son and Victor hates Kyle because of that. That’s something that isn’t going to change. It’s fact. He’s Jack’s kid. I think at this point, Kyle could literally cough up a lung to save a Newman and Victor would still despise him.
Kyle Abbott and Victor: Will Peace Ever Be Possible?
So, I think the family is going to be stunned and maybe skeptical if Victor tells Claire, “Go ahead, live your life. Love who you want. I’m going to keep my mouth shut.” I mean, I doubt Victor’s going to say, “Oh, that’s great, let’s throw a party and celebrate you moving in with Kyle.” Because really, Victor can’t act like he’s now being supportive of Claire dating Kyle.
Nobody would believe it. But Victor can back off, let Claire cool off, and then of course he can try again. I don’t think Kyle will believe it for a minute. You know for darn sure that Jack and Diane Jenkins (Susan Walters) will not buy it if Victor backs down.
Claire, Kyle, and the Newman-Abbott Family Skepticism
So, I’m guessing Claire would take this with a grain of salt, maybe a whole block of salt, and take a wait-and-see approach. But of course, Victor thinks he’s smarter than everybody and probably thinks he’ll get away with it.
I bet it’ll be a few weeks, maybe a month or two, and then Victor’s back to plotting, looking to undermine Kyle and make him look bad so Claire will dump him. Once Victor is back to plotting, I’ve got a few ideas of what he might do.
Victor Newman’s Next Moves: Schemes and Alliances
First off, Victor might circle back to Audra Charles and say, “Hey, if you want to try again and can make something happen to permanently split Claire and Kyle, come back and see me for a big paycheck. I know you’re at rock bottom. Don’t come talk to me unless there’s results. But if you can do it, we can talk.”
Audra may jump at the chance because I think she’s going to be vowing revenge on Claire. After she goes and tells Nate Hastings (Sean Dominic) what Audra did, he probably dumps her. She’s not going to be happy if Nate walks away. So I could see Audra still wanting to break up Kyle and Claire just for payback. But if she can also get a paycheck, that’s doubly good.
Audra Charles’ Possible Revenge on Claire and Kyle
The second con that Victor may try is to throw Holden Novak (Nathan Owens) at Claire Grace Newman. We all know Holden’s crushing on Claire. It almost feels like a double date thing with Holden and Claire when they’re having drinks with Daniel Romalotti (Michael Graziadei) and Tessa Porter (Cait Fairbanks).
If Victor realizes that Holden has got a crush on Claire, he may leverage it. Especially since Holden works for Cane Ashby (Billy Flynn). He may offer Holden a deal like, “Spy on Cane for me and make Kyle look bad. Then I can promise to help you be with Claire with my blessing.”
Victor could dangle Claire and being part of a powerful family, but with no intent to honor a deal. That’s how Victor rolls. Since Holden is already paranoid about Cane and smitten with Claire, he might jump at the chance to be with her and earn his way into Victor’s favor.
Holden Novak and Victor’s Manipulations
So the third thing: maybe it’s Cane who Victor uses to get rid of Kyle. We heard Victor mention a possible alliance with Cane, who wants Chancellor really badly. Nikki almost signed it over to save Nick, but then that fell through. So maybe Victor makes an offer that Cane can’t refuse.
Something like Victor tells Cane, “Find a way to split Kyle and Claire that doesn’t reflect on me, and I will split Chancellor with you. We can cut out Billy Abbott (Jason Thompson).” It might be worth half of Chancellor to get what Victor wants while also screwing over Billy.
Victor Newman’s Secret Deals: Cane Ashby and Chancellor Drama
Of course, Victor Newman can always renege on any of these deals. I mean, he can’t turn around and offer Cane all of Chancellor, or Cane would be suspicious. But at the same time, Victor could encourage Cane to go after Jabot and the Abbotts first.
Then Victor can say, “You destroy them and anybody else, and then you and I will face off like men.” The final two gladiators left standing. A big boss battle in the end of the two best men in town. I could see Cane’s ego liking the idea of going toe to toe with Victor after he conquers everybody else.
Will Victor Newman Ever Back Down from Plotting?
So, we’ll see if this spoiler where Victor shocks everybody is indeed about him telling Claire that he’s going to back off Kyle. While it would be nice if Victor said, “Ok, you and Kyle have my blessing,” I don’t know if he would do that. When he did that for Victoria and Cole, it was because Victor felt like Cole had proven himself.
Even though Cole had that psycho aunt Jordan Howard (Colleen Zenk). Victor’s hatred of Jack runs too deep to ever accept his son, Kyle. We’ll see. But I don’t think anybody should believe what Victor says if he gives any kind of endorsement of their relationship. He is not going to stop plotting until Kyle is out of Claire’s life.
