Samantha Armytage Takes a Jab at Danika Mason

made a very cheeky reference to Danika Mason's infamous live television mishap while filling in for Sarah Abo on the Today show.

The veteran presenter, 49, returned to breakfast television on Monday morning as Abo begins maternity leave and wasted little time injecting her trademark humour into the program.

Samantha was joined behind the desk by Michael Willesee Jr when weather presenter Tim Davies crossed live from Victoria's Mount Buller.

During the segment, Davies spoke to a representative from the alpine resort about its snowmaking equipment.

'We're now running these snow factories, which are lovely margarita machines,' the guest joked, adding that visitors could take the snow home at night.

After the broadcast returned to the studio, Willesee Jr wondered whether the machinery could actually be repurposed to make the popular cocktail.

'It looks beautiful. I wonder if it actually would work as a margarita machine,' he mused.

Armytage immediately turned the conversation towards sports presenter Mason.

'The snowmaker? Yeah, I don't know. Ask Danika,' she quipped.

'Danika, how does it work? Too soon?'

The former Sunrise host then appeared to think better of the playful jab, abruptly stopping herself.

'No. But she's an expectant mother,' Armytage added, prompting Mason to laugh off the remark.

The gag appeared to reference Mason's viral live cross from the 2026 Winter Olympics, during which she struggled with her words and veered off topic.

Mason later apologised to viewers and admitted she had consumed alcohol before appearing on air, saying the cold, high altitude and not eating dinner had intensified its effects.

'I totally misjudged a situation. I shouldn't have had a drink,' she said at the time, adding that the appearance did not meet the professional standards she set for herself. She also took full responsibility for the incident. 

At the time, Mason admitted the fallout was difficult to deal with as she was left fearing for the worst in the immediacy.

'I look back on that, I knew straight away that I had screwed up and the next 24 hours I was in a spiral I was just thinking the world's worst,' she told Triple M Rocks Footy NRL.

'I was thinking this is my job gone, this is this gone.'

But she credited the support and calls from the rugby league community in helping her settle back down after her spiral.

'The rugby league community that was calling me was insane, she said.

'I remember Joey - Andrew Johns - he rings me and Kate, his wife, is in the background, he's like 'even Kate found it funny' and I was like 'oh God'.

'He was an incredible support, he kept on FaceTiming me and checking in.

'Liam [Knight] was in England and I was on the phone with him and I said whatever you do, don't watch it, and then I had another call coming in.

'I was like hang on, I will call you back in four minutes, I hang up on my other call and I call him back and he's like great timing, I just finished it.'

She also credited co-host Karl Stefanovic with helping her in the moment, 'He was great, he rang me and talked me through it and said 'what are you going to do?'

'I said 'I'm going to come out and apologise, you can't take people for fools' and he was like 'perfect, we'll be here for you''.'

The Channel Nine sports presenter has since announced she is expecting her first child, a baby girl, with her partner Liam Knight in December.

Armytage congratulated the couple when the pregnancy was revealed, describing the news as 'fabulous'.

Armytage's return to breakfast TV comes as she fills in for Abo, who recently stepped away from Today to begin maternity leave.