Ortiz has found great success since moving to the states to ride, and in 2013 had a mount in the Belmont Stakes aboard Incognito, a Kiaran McLaughlin trainee taking a large set up in class for the Triple Crown race. His grandfather, also named Irad Ortiz, was a jockey, and so are his uncle, Ivan Ortiz, and brother, Jose Ortiz. Originally from Trujillo Alto in Puerto Rico, Ortiz is a graduate of that country’s Escuela Vocacional Hípica, a school for prospective jockeys.