Fox Sports’ Jamie Little Made Motorsports History at Daytona International Speedway

Fox Sports reporter Jamie Little is no stranger to making history. She was the first woman to cover the Indy 500 as a pit reporter on TV and the first woman to cover both the Daytona 500 and Indy 500 in the same capacity. Little made history once again on Saturday as she became the first woman to call race play-by-play for a national series.

Little achieved this feat during the NASCAR ARCA Menards Series race at Daytona International Speedway. She partnered with analyst Phil Parsons in the booth and called the Lucas Oil 200, a race that Corey Heim won. Though Little also fulfilled her normal duties as a pit reporter for NASCAR’s Cup, Xfinity, and Truck series during the weekend.

“Reflecting on the week that was….such an incredible opportunity I had on Saturday and I am forever grateful,” Little wrote on Instagram after the race. “So many people helped me get to this point in my career. You all know who you are, especially those [at ESPN] & [NASCAR on Fox]. To all of the producers, statisticians, drivers, teams, co-workers & my family…thank you for your support and encouragement. With a vision, passion and hard work, anything is possible.”

Before making history, Little spoke to the Charlotte Observer and detailed the prep that went into her first foray into the booth. She and Parsons took part in Zoom rehearsals in December and then they met with drivers at Daytona the first week of February during an ARCA test session. The pair returned to Charlotte for some test sessions at the Fox studio.

According to the Observer, Fox Sports producer Jacob Ullman has high expectations for Little. He specifically mentioned the possibility of her getting experience calling the ARCA Menards Series and then moving to higher sport levels. “She’s one of the top broadcasters we have in our company, be it in motorsports or otherwise,” he said.

Ullman also clarified that Little got the opportunity because she is good at her job and not simply because she is making NASCAR history. To this point, Little has spent nearly two decades covering motorsports and breaking barriers. She has experience with all of NASCAR’s series, which made her a top choice for the booth.

“It is the natural next step,” Little said, per Fox Sports. “When you look at it, there should have been a woman doing this a long time ago, and for some reason, there just hasn’t been. It has to be the person who has been around long enough, they’re respected long enough, they understand the sport enough – and they’re given an opportunity. I don’t know that any broadcast network has ever given a woman an opportunity.”