Irad Ortiz Jr., born on August 11, 1992, is a Puerto Rican jockey who has been a notable rider in the New York Thoroughbred horse race track since 2012. In 2014, he won his first Breeders’ Cup race aboard Lady Eli, and in 2016, he won his first American Classic aboard Creator in the Belmont Stakes. On Mo Donegal, he won the 2022 Belmont Stakes.

Ortiz was born in the Puerto Rican town of Trujillo Alto. His grandpa, Irad Ortiz, and uncle, Iván Ortiz, were both jockeys. José Ortiz, his younger brother, is also a well-known jockey in New York. “We support each other, but you know, when we go out there, we are jockeys,” José explained.

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One of his childhood heroes was Angel Cordero Jr., the first Puerto Rican jockey recognized in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Ortiz enrolled in Puerto Rico’s Escuela Vocacional Hpica, a school for aspiring jockeys when he was 16 years old.

Sarai Ortiz, Ortiz’s daughter, was born in 2015.

Ortiz started his professional career riding career on New Year’s Day, 2011, at Hipódromo Camarero in Puerto Rico, winning 76 of 357 races over the next few months. Pito Rosa, who operates in the NYRA jockeys’ room and was a childhood friend of Ortiz’s grandfather, persuaded Ortiz to visit New York in June. Rosa also found Ortiz an agent and served as a mentor while he was settling in. On June 17, Ortiz won his maiden race at Belmont Park, and on June 24, he won his first American race aboard Millennium Jet. He finished the year with 151 victories from 1,016 starts.

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Ortiz was unanimously chosen as the Jockeys’ Guild Jockey of the Week for the week of June 6th – 12th, 2016. Ortiz kicked up the weekend by capturing the Jersey Girl Stakes, the New York Stakes, and the Easy Goer Stakes. He subsequently won his fourth stakes race of the week on Creator, capturing his first American Classic in the 2016 Belmont Stakes. Creator’s trainer, Steve Asmussen, remarked, “I thought Irad did a masterful job with all of his decisions.  He saved enough ground going into the first turn and stayed inside, and that gave us a chance to win.” He came second in the North American jockey standings once more.

Ortiz finished third in the earnings standings and first in the number of wins in 2017. He was a finalist for the Eclipse Award alongside his brother José, who won.

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He earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in 2018 after topping the jockey list in both victories and earnings. He won the Belmont spring/summer and Saratoga meets, the latter capped by a triumph on Diversify in the Whitney Handicap. On September 15, he rode Gambler’s Fallacy to his 2,000th career victory at Belmont Park. At the 2018 Breeders’ Cup, he received the Shoemaker Award for outstanding jockey after winning two races, the Juvenile Fillies Turf with Newspaperofrecord and the Filly & Mare Sprint with Shamrock Rose, as well as five other top-four finishes.

Ortiz’s business slowed in the fall of 2019, with him finishing seventh in the Belmont meet rankings. However, he had an outstanding weekend at the 2019 Breeders’ Cup, winning four races, including the $4 million Turf and the $6 million Classic with Bricks and Mortar. “Some riders have a good rapport with certain horses,” trainer Todd Pletcher explained. “Irad and Vino Rosso really gelled, you could see there was great chemistry there from the first time he got on him.” He finished the year with the most wins and earnings, and he got his second Eclipse Award.

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Ortiz won his third straight Eclipse Award in 2020, with highlights including a Breeders’ Cup Sprint victory with Whitmore. On June 3, 2021, he was hospitalised after being tossed when his mount tripped after moving to the lead in a maiden race at Belmont Park. Ortiz was hit by one of the pursuing horses, but CT scans and X-rays revealed no injuries.