by James Platz

As a 2-year-old, I C Caviar made six starts, reaching the winner’s circle twice in his first season. Saturday night (March 22) the trotter will line up behind the Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing and Casino starting gate for the 344th time in a long and successful career. The Malabar Millennium gelding, now 14, kicked off his 2025 campaign with a victory last Saturday (March 15) for trainer Charlie Stewart and Lucky Label Stable LLC.

The 2025 season will be the third racing out of Stewart’s barn. The diagonal-gaited gelding began 2023 competing for trainer Joe Seekman before being claimed in late April of that year. I C Caviar had produced a win in six starts before the barn change.

“There was a claiming series at the beginning of the meet that year and I just kind of liked him,” Stewart said. “He kind of stood out to me on paper. He didn’t show much, but he just kind of stood out to me, you know, with all the back class and whatnot.”

Prior to 2023, I C Caviar had shown that he could be consistently competitive. With the exception of his 3-year-old season, the trotter notched wins each year, banking over $430,000 in the process. Through the years, I C Caviar has taken seasonal marks while winning at multiple tracks including The Meadowlands, Yonkers, Harrah’s Philadelphia, Scioto Downs, Miami Valley and The Meadows.

“I actually looked him up,” Stewart said. “He’s bred by some people in Michigan. He’s Pennsylvania bred, but I think he was foaled in P.E.I. So, I think he’s done a lot of traveling.”

The well-traveled veteran has achieved success at a number of venues, but under the guidance of Stewart, I C Caviar has enjoyed a strong run at Hoosier Park. Outside of one start last season when the gelding was claimed, Stewart has sent I C Caviar to battle 57 times. The result? Seventeen trips to the winner’s circle and just over $175,000 in earnings including his first six-figure season. Not bad for a $15,000 initial investment.

“He’s a barn favorite right now,” Stewart said.

As he should be. The conditioner said that he partnered with owner Eric O’Neill, the man behind Lucky Label Stable, five years ago. I C Caviar is the most successful horse the two men have had together during that time.

“He’s one of his favorites also,” Stewart said. “He’s owned quite a few horses and he always asks how the old man’s doing. I usually send him an update once or twice a week.”

Bred by Pine Creek Stables of Kalamazoo, MI, I C Caviar isn’t just a favorite due to his success on the track. The campaigner is easy to get along with around the barn.

“Well, my 2-year-old son usually loads him on a trailer before he goes to race,” the trainer said. “My wife has a TikTok of my son last year going in the stall. He’s laying down and my son is hugging on him. He’s pretty gentle in the barn. When you hook him up, he’s a little rowdy, but everything else is pretty good.”

Stewart said that I C Caviar’s primary issue on the track is tying up, which requires careful management during the summer months.

“He’s got a couple of issues, you know, like a typical trotter, nervous ones tie up, that kind of stuff,” he said. “So, we try to baby him on that end of it. I will give him a break when it gets warm, just for the fact of the tying up. I like to give him a little bit of a break in the summertime here and there, especially when it gets really hot. Soundness wise, he’s always been good. He’s just a project on the tying up.”

During Hoosier Park’s opening weekend, I C Caviar led off his final campaign with a resounding win. Steered by John DeLong, the 14-year-old sat second through a :57.2 opening half before brushing to the lead and opening up by seven lengths in the stretch. The winning margin in a mile clocked in 1:57.3 was 4½ lengths. The veteran was sent off as the heavy favorite on his way to winning for the 58th time in his career.

“We always try to make sure he’s in a class where he can compete,” Stewart said. “He’s pretty tough. You know, he can do it on the front end, he can do it out of a hole.”

Last year the trotter made 28 starts for his connections, hitting the board 16 times and collecting eight wins, all while raking in $70,864. I C Caviar missed a check only three times for Stewart in 2024.

“He’s sound,” the conditioner said of I C Caviar, now a winner of over $600,000 lifetime. “He’s pretty healthy right now. We just keep him trying to feel good all the time. You keep them old guys fat and happy, they seem to do pretty good for you. I honestly think he could have a year like he did last year.”

The trotter has drawn post 6 in Saturday night’s second race, an event for non-winners of $5,000 in their last four starts. I C Caviar isn’t a star attraction at Hoosier Park, but he is the kind of horse any trainer would want in their barn. He’s a blue-collar horse that has consistently delivered results for his connections, and hopefully he’ll reach the winner’s circle several more times during the 2025 campaign.