Hignett, then a university student in materials engineering, and Stack built their first car — a Honda Integra prepared for endurance racing — and debuted at the 24 Hours Nürburgring and Spa 24 Hours in 2000. The following seasons saw the team race in the Renault Clio V6 Trophy and return to the Nürburgring before moving into prototype competition in 2002 with a Pilbeam in the FIA Sportscar Championship, finishing second in the SR2 class.
In 2004, Team Jota purchased Zytek's very first car, the Zytek 04S, beginning a long association with the engineering company. They raced the Zytek in the Le Mans Endurance Series, and in 2005 made their first 24 Hours of Le Mans entry, running as high as fifth overall until retiring in the 22nd hour after an on-track accident.
Through 2006 and 2007, Jota ran as the official Zytek factory team and also prepared a Lola-Judd LMP1 for Charouz Racing Systems. In 2008, the Jota Sport brand was formally introduced as a commercial entity alongside Simon Dolan, with the team entering the Porsche Carrera Cup GB in addition to maintaining prototype programmes.
In 2011, Jota began a partnership with Aston Martin, competing in the Le Mans Series in the GTE Pro class with a V8 Vantage GT2 car. From 2012 onward, the team consolidated around LMP2 machinery, running a Zytek Z11SN Nissan in the European Le Mans Series and recording a class win at Spa in the FIA World Endurance Championship. Consistent class results followed over the next three seasons, including a class win and fifth overall at the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The 2015 season brought a second in class and tenth overall at Le Mans. In 2016, Jota ran as G-Drive Racing under a landmark Gazprom sponsorship deal, fielding Oreca machinery in both the FIA WEC and European Le Mans Series with drivers including Roman Rusinov, Rene Rast, and Simon Dolan.
In 2017, Jota joined forces with Jackie Chan DC Racing to campaign two Oreca 07 LMP2 cars in the WEC, with Car 38 crewed by Ho-Pin Tung, Oliver Jarvis, and Thomas Laurent — an alliance that placed the team on the overall podium at the 2017 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The 2018–2019 super-season saw Car 38 finish second in the championship and Car 37 finish third, cementing Jota as one of the premier LMP2 operations in the world. Across the 2019–2020 season, Car 38, driven by Anthony Davidson, Antonio Felix da Costa, and Roberto Gonzalez, again finished second in class and sixth overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The 2021 season saw Jota field two Oreca 07s, with Car 28 — driven by Tom Blomqvist, Sean Gelael, and Stoffel Vandoorne — finishing second in class at Le Mans and second in the championship. The 2022 campaign was a dominant one for Car 38, crewed by Antonio Felix da Costa, Roberto Gonzalez, and Will Stevens: five podiums across six rounds and an LMP2 class win at Le Mans secured Jota's first FIA World Endurance Championship title.
For 2023, Jota entered the Hypercar class as Porsche's customer racing team, operating as Hertz Team JOTA and fielding the Porsche 963 LMDh. Supply chain delays meant missing the opening rounds, but the programme expanded to two Hypercars for 2024 — carrying numbers 12 and 38 — with a driver roster including Antonio Felix da Costa, Will Stevens, Callum Ilott, Norman Nato, Jenson Button, Phil Hanson, and Oliver Rasmussen. The number 12 car took a surprise victory at Spa-Francorchamps in 2024.
For the 2025 season, Hertz Team Jota transitioned from Porsche to Cadillac, partnering with Cadillac Racing to run the Cadillac V-Series.R — marking the first time in the team's history that it operated as a factory entry. The confirmed driver lineup included Sebastian Bourdais, Alex Lynn, Earl Bamber, Will Stevens, Norman Nato, and Jenson Button.
Jota's trajectory from a Honda Integra built by a student in his spare time to a Hypercar-class factory entry over 25 years represents one of the most complete development arcs in British motorsport. The team's sustained record in LMP2 — multiple ELMS championships, Le Mans class wins, and one outright WEC LMP2 title — established it as a benchmark for privateer endurance operations globally.