Howie Mandel has defended his ‘awkward’ remark about fellow America’s Got Talent judge Sofia Vergara’s personal life.

The live presentations for the 18th season of the talent show began on Tuesday (August 22), with Mandel joining judges Vergara, Simon Cowell, and Heidi Klum in their quest for the country’s most talented individuals.

The episode featured young ventriloquist Brynn Cummings, who wanted Klum to help her choose the finest eligible bachelor for her puppet, Penelope the Skunk, during her show.

Mandel, ever the comic, took advantage of the chance to make a joke about Vergara’s recent divorce from Joe Manganiello, saying, “If I have one word of advice: If you’re looking for eligible bachelors, you should’ve talked to Sofia ’cause she’s in the market right now.”

Vergara looked to take the joke in stride, laughing and cheering, but presenter Terry Crews abruptly shut down the issue, saying, “No, we are not doing that here.”

Mandel’s joke was labeled ‘awkward’ by social media users after the program aired, but the comic has now replied to defend his remark and argues it wasn’t done ‘too soon’ after her relationship ended.

He told Extra, “People were online saying, ‘Too soon. It’s never too soon, in my opinion, as soon as you’re accessible. People, she’s new.”

Mandel went on to explain that Vergara enjoyed the joke, noting, “People thought that was mean and insensitive. If you observed Sofia, you’d see that she yelled after approaching me and thought it was hilarious.

“She said, ‘Yes,’ so she has a great sense of humor, and I wouldn’t do anything to hurt a fellow—a friend first and a coworker second.”

Mandel, of course, couldn’t resist making another joke, saying, “Now that I’ve said that, if you’re watching Extra and you can think of somebody, send them our way and we’ll either swipe left or right.”

“I think everybody watching who is available believes they’re the perfect match for Sofia,” Mandel said when asked who he felt may be a suitable match for Vergara.

“I don’t think so, Sofia. She doesn’t need my help. She truly does not. I suppose she’ll be fighting them off.

“I mean, she’s a great friend, a brilliant person, a businesswoman, a powerhouse, and she has an incredible sense of humor.”

“She checks every box, so whoever ends up with Sofia is going to be really, really lucky.”

Mandel expressed optimism that at the end of this season of AGT, the world will have found a match for Vergara, saying, “We’ll find her a match and leave it up to America to vote.”