Umamusume: Pretty Derby – How to Train Any Horse Girl

In Umamusume: Pretty Derby, you take on the role of a new trainer at Tracen Academy. Your job is to prepare ambitious horse-girls to win the URA Finale, a special racing program run by the academy’s director.

But training isn’t just about that one final. Strong racers will also help you in Team Trials, pass down skills to newcomers, and build an overall top-tier team.

To develop your characters, you’ll need to carefully distribute their stats, choose the right training sessions, and manage their condition. The more effort you put in, the better your chances of raising true champions.

In this blog, I’ll explain how to train your characters in Umamusume: Pretty Derby and share some useful tips for getting the best results.

How to Train Your Characters in Umamusume: Pretty Derby

To start training in Umamusume: Pretty Derby, go to Career Mode. There, choose the horsegirl you want to train, set up her Legacy Team and Support Cards. Your goal after that is to improve her stats through training sessions and complete career missions.

For beginners, we’ve prepared a simple step-by-step guide with tips to help you train a strong, high-ranking Umamusume.

Getting Started with Career Mode in Umamusume: Pretty Derby

In Career mode, the first thing you’ll do is choose the horsegirl you want to train. There are 26 characters in the game overall, but you’ll only see the ones you’ve unlocked. Each Umamusume is unique, with her own skills, stats, and aptitudes. That means some are better suited for sprints, others for long-distance races, and some excel with more balanced, hybrid strategies.

If you're a beginner and not sure who to pick, try Sakura Bakushin. She’s a great starting choice: a front-runner who wins races easily and is available right away with no extra requirements.

Of course, you can also try other options like Silence Suzuka, Vodka, or Daiwa Scarlet. Each has its own strengths: Suzuka is excellent for front-running, Vodka is versatile on medium distances, and Daiwa Scarlet is reliable and stable. But I’d still personally recommend Sakura Bakushin. She’s the best choice for getting started — simple, forgiving, and perfect for learning the game’s mechanics.

After choosing your main trainee, you’ll need to assign two Legacy Umamusume. This is a crucial step: Legacy partners provide your racer with stat boosts (like Speed, Stamina, Power, Distance) and skill hints at the start and throughout training. Your choices here will shape her growth style and effectiveness.

To build a strong sprinter, pick Legacy Umamusume with a high Sprint rating. If you want a more balanced racer, look for high Speed, Power, and Stamina stats, ideally with an A rating in Mile distance and Front style.

Remember, your Legacy list will only include Umamusume you’ve successfully trained before. To unlock better options, keep developing new characters. Also, you can scout for new horsegirls in the Scout tab — and thanks to Free Umamusume: Pretty Derby Codes, you can do this faster and for free. You can even borrow guest Legacy Umamusume from other trainers (for a small fee in Monies), which is a great way to try new combinations and strengthen your team.

Choose the Right Support Cards

At this stage, you’ll need to build a deck of six Support Cards: five that you’ve pulled from the gacha and one that you can borrow from another player. To explain: Support Cards are horsegirls who train alongside your main character and help improve her starting stats (like Wit or Stamina), increase her fan count, maintain her mood, and provide race bonuses.

The skills your Umamusume learns during training depend on the Support Cards you choose, since these cards provide the skill hints she can unlock. This helps cover any weak points in her stats and develop her in a more balanced way.

Before starting a run, you can tap the Perks button to see exactly what boosts your deck is giving. Aim for SSR or at least SR cards with the right stats — they’ll significantly improve training efficiency. And don’t forget to level up your Support Cards: the higher their level, the more benefit they bring to your horsegirl.

Level Up and Reach Career Milestones

Once everything is set and your Umamusume is officially enrolled at the academy, you can start training her to meet career goals. These goals appear at the top of the screen and usually involve entering and winning well-known races that unlock the path to the URA Finale, with each goal also showing the required minimum fan count.

As a trainer, you’ll need to prepare your horsegirl for each race one at a time. You’ll have a limited number of days to train her before every competition.

Below are the main attributes you should focus on and what they mean:

Little bit tip for you: The Hints icon is super useful during training. It tells you which stats to focus on, when it’s best to rest, or if it’s time to visit the Infirmary. Be sure to keep an eye on it.

Early on, it’s a good idea to train Speed, Stamina, and Wit, and choose sessions where the most Support Card friends are joining in (you can see them in the top right corner). Each training session uses up one in-game day and lowers your character’s energy. If her energy gets too low, use the Rest option to recover. Don’t overwork her, or she might get injured.

Don’t Neglect Your Umamusume’s Mood

Mood plays a big role in both training and races. If your horsegirl is in a bad mood, her training efficiency and stat gains will drop. You can cheer her up with outings and fun activities, but keep in mind — these take up an entire in-game day.

Mood really matters for your character, and injuries can make it even worse. So always send your Umamusume to the Infirmary if she’s hurt before planning any recreational outings.

To meet fan count requirements for races, go to the Races menu and enter extra races — this will help you reach the target faster.

Also, throughout your horsegirl’s three-year career, don’t forget to keep improving her skills. This will make training races much easier to win. Use Skill Points to unlock valuable abilities — especially those that boost Speed and Stamina or come with a Hint discount, since these are especially helpful.