đŸ’„This is my “perfect counterpart”, and you’re about to see its weird, hilarious, and super creative side. Guy Fieri excitedly unveils his own clone right at the 2026 South Beach Wine & Food Festival.

Guy Fieri Calls Son Hunter His ‘Counterpart’ and Says Fans Will Soon Get to See His ‘Whimsical, Funny, Creative Side’ (Exclusive)

Hunter Fieri and Guy Fieri onstage during their cooking demo at the 2026 South Beach Wine & Food Festival on February 21, 2026 in Miami Beach, Florida.
The Food Network star opened up about his son’s role on his new show during an interview with PEOPLE at the 2026 South Beach Wine & Food Festival

Guy Fieri’s Tournament of Champions VII and Flavortown Food Fight are just around the corner — and the Food Network host will have his son Hunter by his side for both.

On the latest season of TOC, which premieres March 1, Hunter, 29, will take viewers backstage, getting winners’ reactions to culinary battles. Guy’s older son will also appear for some challenges on Flavortown Food Fight, a brand-new show that launches three days later.

“Everybody that does shows like I do needs a counterpart,” Guy, 58, told PEOPLE during the 2026 South Beach Wine & Food Festival.

“Someone has got to be the counter balance or the foil,” he adds. “And Hunter is, one, my best friend, and, two, my kid, and three, a really good, aware co-host. He gets it. He knows television, he understands what we need, what we got to do.”

“What Hunter pulls off and what he does when he creates is really, it’s Hunter. It’s Hunter’s, whimsical, funny, creative side. And that’s his part of the deal and it’s my favorite thing,” he continued.

Guy Fieri and Hunter Fieri speak onstage at the Tournament of Champions during the 2025 South Beach Wine and Food Festival on February 21, 2025 in Miami Beach, Florida.

Guy Fieri and Hunter Fieri.Jason Koerner/Getty 

Guy, who also shares son Ryder, 20, with wife Lori, notes that his shows are a family affair.

“It’s the best part of it. And anytime I get my nephew Jules, or I get Ryder involved, or my wife Lori, who will be making a cameo, a very important cameo in Flavortown Food Fight, my favorite part,” he says.

Each episode of the new competition will see Guy welcome three chefs to Flavortown to test their culinary chops.

Contestants will compete in a variety of eateries with names inspired by Guy’s life, including street food carts, neighborhood spots, fast casual restaurants and fine dining establishments.

Guy says he’s most excited that “Flavortown comes alive” in the new show.

“Everybody’s going to get a chance to see this mythical place that I’ve talked about for all these years is really coming to life,” he says.

Guy Fieri at the Mayor's podium in Flavortown Food Fight.

Guy Fieri at the Mayor’s podium in ‘Flavortown Food Fight’.Food Network 

As for TOC, he says viewers can expect the new season to keep things fresh.

“I don’t want to reproduce what we’ve already seen,” he says, noting that his goal was to “bring in new chefs, bring in new twists, new turns, new ideas, always staying in the same true reality that it is the most difficult culinary competition in the world.”

“The chefs are training for it now,” he adds. “They’re getting ready for it. They’re preparing themselves like a culinary Olympian and what’s coming is it’s going to rock your world.”

Guy previously teased the appearance of four “food world icons” in a trailer for season 7.

Speaking with PEOPLE at SOBEWFF, he would only say that the surprise stars are “four of my favorite chefs.”

“There’s so many people that I look up to and that I regard and I respect in this industry,” he says. “And it’s hard to pick who do you want. It’s not just who do you want, but who’s willing to do it? Because TOC is, you can’t be timid. You have to be ready to go all out. And so to find the four that want to do it, that’s the challenge. But we found four and they’re ready to go.”

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