Samantha Armytage cracked up live on air on Wednesday morning when she interviewed the distinctive-looking Muay Thai fighter Ryan McDonald.
McDonald, 19, has been hailed a hero after he stepped in to protect two young women during a road rage confrontation on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast recently.
But when he appeared on Today to chat about the incident, fill-in host Armytage, 49, appeared to be taken aback by his very tanned complexion and bleached blond hair.
When McDonald first appeared on the screen, Armytage appeared shocked by his ‘unique’ look, laughing as she said: ‘Wow.’
Though she quickly recovered and continued with the interview, saying he was a ‘legend’ for de-escalating a violent situation on the Bruce Highway.
However, the subject of McDonald’s appearance came up again later in the segment when he joked he was ‘pretty hard to miss’.
Samantha Armytage (right) couldn’t seem to keep her composure on Wednesday morning when she interviewed the distinctive-looking Muay Thai fighter Ryan McDonald. (Pictured alongside Tom Steinfort)
Armytage and her fill-in co-host Tom Steinfort then started to laugh as she said: ‘You said it, Ryan. You’re quite something to look at.’
‘Unique,’ Steinfort, 42, said.
‘Is that part of the whole thing, you know? The Muay Thai,’ Armytage added.
‘Yeah, I guess it’s kind of my brand now. I’ve looked like this my whole life, but since I started fighting, that’s just how people know me. The blond tan guy,’ McDonald said.
McDonald went on to joke he looked like Dolph Lundgren, the Swedish-American actor and martial artist who rocks a similar distinctive look.
‘You’re much more handsome than Dolph Lundgren,’ Armytage said.
McDonald went viral on Tuesday when he jumped out of his car on the Bruce Highway to protect two young women caught up in a road rage incident.
Dashcam footage of the moment showed a van trying to merge into another lane of traffic on the Sunshine Coast motorway.
When McDonald first appeared on the screen, Armytage appeared shocked by his ‘unique’ look, laughing as she said: ‘Wow.’
The van driver then stopped, left his vehicle and approached a car carrying two young women.
He allegedly tried to open the driver’s door – before Muay Thai champion McDonald intervened, confronting the man as other motorists gathered nearby.
‘It was just two girls on their own in the car,’ he told Channel Seven on Monday.
‘And I was thinking this would be a good opportunity to help and use what I know to protect these two girls, or de-escalate the situation.’
McDonald and the van driver exchanged words before both men removed their shirts in the middle of the road.
However, the confrontation ended without a punch being thrown when the motorist learned that McDonald was, in fact, a professional fighter.
McDonald has recorded eight victories during his fighting career, including four by knockout.
‘He came back up to me and was like ‘Are you sure you want this?’ I was like, ‘Yeah’,’ McDonald said.
A motorist reportedly backed down after realising McDonald was an experienced professional Muay Thai fighter and competitor
The van driver returned to his vehicle and drove away.
McDonald said that preventing the confrontation from becoming violent was the ideal result.
‘It was the best possible outcome, to de-escalate the [situation]… everybody got home safe that day,’ he said.
Footage of the incident has since attracted more than three million views across social media, where McDonald was widely praised for helping the women.
‘What a legend to put himself in that position and defend those girls he didn’t even know,’ one social media user said.
Another person said: ‘Glad he stepped in. I’ve got daughters and granddaughters and that man trying to open the car door isn’t on.’
A third added: ‘I cannot quite believe this man stepped in to help two vulnerable women, and most of you only want to make comments on his appearance!
‘Good on you mate, I’d be glad to have you there if this happened to me or my daughter.’
Some social media users said the incident would have been a ‘scary experience’ for the women.
‘Only a complete loser of a man would try to intimidate or threaten young women. Thankfully there are still decent men around prepared to step in,’ a commenter said.