Heated Rivalry Star Hudson Williams Once Aimed To Be An MMA Fighter

Heated Rivalry celebrity Hudson Williams once wanted to walk out under UFC lights. Now, he is better known for cutting across the ice and trading barbs in Heated Rivalry than for trading punches in a cage. The path between those two worlds runs straight through a barn party, a bad idea and a rock that left a scar on his shoulder.

Williams grew up in a small town, Kamloops, BC, like a lot of teenagers, gravitated toward whatever felt intense, competitive and a little bit dangerous. For him, that was MMA. He trained for a stretch, long enough to start picturing himself one day in the UFC, even if that goal never moved beyond the early stages. In an interview with Andy Cohen, he explained:

“I hid that from my mom for a year. I told her I tripped and fell at this barn party. We fought next to some cows. It was a barn, kind of like, I grew up in a small town. And this guy wanted to fight me or my friends. He just wanted to fight one of us. And they were like, ‘Hudson, we’re too drunk. Do you want to fight him?’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, if we have like a referee.’

“So my friend, who did MMA with me, kind of was a referee. And I was like, ‘If one of us falls, you have to catch us.’ We kind of set some loose rules. And then we were like, ‘No wrestling.’ But then we wrestled and then tussled. That’s how it happened. And then a rock on my, no stitches. Yeah, a little rock in the ground after we flipped and tumbled.”

He has been clear that he never turned pro and never made it to a big promotion; it was more about testing himself than building a full-time career. Still, that period gave him a base in striking and grappling that would quietly pay off later when he switched to acting roles that demand physicality.

The story fans keep asking about is the one behind his shoulder scar. Williams has said he hid the real cause from his mother for a year, telling her he just tripped and fell at a barn party. The truth was more chaotic. The party took place in a barn, literally next to cows, when a local guy decided he wanted to fight either Williams or one of his friends.

His friends were drunk and nominated him to step in, on the condition that they at least pretend to have a referee. A friend who trained MMA with him played that role. They agreed on some loose rules, even said “no wrestling,” and then promptly ignored that line, wrestling and “tussling” until a scramble sent Williams down onto a rock. No stitches, but a permanent reminder of one of his dumber decisions.

At some point, Williams recognized that the UFC dream was more fantasy than plan and started leaning into acting. He began stacking smaller roles and building a reputation as someone willing to do the physical work for a part, whether it meant fight choreography or on-ice training.

That approach paid off with his breakout in Heated Rivalry, a hockey romance built on intense on-ice clashes and simmering yearning, which turned him into a familiar face almost overnight. Heated Rivalry has grown into a genuine breakout hit in the streaming space, especially within the hockey and LGBTQ+ drama niches. It has built a strong online following.

Reviews for Heated Rivalry have been very strong overall, with most of the buzz centering on the chemistry between the leads, the emotional slow burn, and the way the adaptation handles its romance. User scores and comments on major databases lean heavily toward 9–10/10, with multiple reviewers calling it one of the best series they have seen in years.