New to Umamusume: Pretty Derby? This guide covers how Career Mode works, what each stat does, which Uma to pick first, and why Support Cards matter more than the character you choose.
Umamusume: Pretty Derby launched globally on June 26, 2025. The game's presentation — anime aesthetics, horse girl characters, idol performances — gives the impression of a passive gacha title. It is not. The core gameplay is a roguelite training simulation in which approximately 70 turns of decisions across three in-game years determine whether a trainee Uma becomes a champion or falls short at the final race. Players who need to top up their Carat balance can do so through LootBar without interrupting their training sessions.
Enjoy up to 22% off on Umamusume: Pretty Derby Top-Ups.
3-Minute Delivery for Non-Stop Gaming.
Trusted 4.9/5 on Trustpilot, 10/10 among Players.
Official Partnership Route, Protect Your Game Wallet.
What a Career Run Is
Every Career run in Umamusume: Pretty Derby is a self-contained training cycle. Before starting, the player selects one trainee Uma, two Legacy Umamusume to serve as mentors, and six Support Cards that determine which training facilities produce bonus stat gains. Legacy Umamusume pass down Blue Factors (direct stat boosts) and Pink Factors (aptitude improvements) to the current trainee.
The run spans approximately 70 turns across three in-game years: Junior, Classic, and Senior. Each turn, the player chooses one of five actions: train at a facility, rest to restore Energy, take a walk to improve Motivation, visit the infirmary to remove a negative condition, or enter an optional race.
Each decision has cumulative consequences. Excessive Rest wastes training turns. Training with critically low Energy risks a training failure, which produces no stat gains and may apply negative status conditions. Skipping optional races means missing Skill Points and Fan counts that unlock later content. Individually, each choice is simple; across 70 turns, the differences compound significantly.
When a run ends, the trained Uma becomes a veteran and is available as a Legacy in future runs. Even runs that do not produce race champions contribute to the Legacy chain, which improves every subsequent run.
The Five Stats
Each Uma has five core stats that determine race performance.
Speed sets the Uma's maximum racing velocity. Stamina determines how long she sustains peak speed — particularly important in Medium and Long distance races, where the final stretch often decides placements. Power governs acceleration, specifically how quickly she reaches top speed after a pace change. Guts affects performance during the closing stretch when Stamina is depleted. Wit influences skill activation rate and reduces the risk of being boxed in by other runners mid-race.
One mechanic the game does not explain clearly: every Uma receives a hidden +400 boost to all five stats during Career Mode races. Displayed stat totals therefore do not represent the full picture in race calculations. Because of this hidden boost, heavily overinvesting in Guts yields diminishing returns — the bonus already covers the functional threshold for most race scenarios. Players should bring Guts to a reasonable baseline and direct remaining turns toward the stats most relevant to their Uma's race distances.
The stat cap across all three current scenarios is 1,200 per stat. This figure represents the competitive ceiling for high-level Champions Meeting play and is not a practical target for beginners.
Energy and Motivation
Energy depletes with each training turn. When Energy drops too low, training attempts risk failure: the turn is consumed, no stats are gained, and a negative condition may be applied. The intuitive response is to use Rest, but Rest consumes a full turn while producing no stat output and does not guarantee recovery from negative conditions.
Wit training is the more efficient alternative. It is the only training type that partially restores Energy while still generating stat gains and skill hints. When Energy is running low, Wit training extends the run productively rather than sacrificing a full turn. Experienced players schedule Wit training sessions proactively to maintain Energy levels rather than using them only in emergencies.
Motivation is tracked separately and displayed as an emoji icon. It directly multiplies training output across all facilities. The difference in stat gains between Terrible and Excellent Motivation is approximately 40 percent per turn. When Motivation drops to yellow, spending one turn on a walk typically yields more total stat output than grinding through multiple weak training turns at reduced effectiveness.
Support Cards
Support Cards are the single most impactful variable in any Career run. A strong deck paired with a mid-tier Uma consistently outperforms a weak deck paired with a top-tier Uma. Support Cards determine which facilities produce bonus gains, which skills become available, and which in-run events trigger.
Each Support Card corresponds to one of the five stat types. When a card's character appears in the matching training facility, that facility produces bonus stat gains for that turn. When the bond meter with a support character reaches maximum (rainbow) level, Friendship Training activates, multiplying stat gains significantly. Building bonds to rainbow level as early as possible and consistently training in facilities where multiple supports are present is the foundational habit of efficient Career runs.
The recommended beginner deck structure is: two Speed cards, two Stamina cards, one Wit card, and one borrowed guest card. This composition covers the most critical stats while Wit's Energy recovery property keeps the run from stalling. Recommended starting cards: Kitasan Black (Speed), Fine Motion (run stability and Energy management), and Super Creek (Stamina, especially useful for Medium and Long distance races).
Which Uma to Pick
New players receive a free beginner selection ticket. Oguri Cap is the standard recommendation: she has balanced stats across multiple race distances and holds B aptitude on Dirt tracks, which is useful for future content. If Oguri Cap was already obtained through gacha pulls, Maruzensky and Taiki Shuttle are strong alternatives. Taiki Shuttle is particularly recommended for players interested in Dirt track content.
The Uma selected with the ticket is less important than the Support Cards assembled for the deck. One strong SSR Support Card contributes more to run performance than the difference between most Uma options at the same tier. Players who want to optimise from the start may reroll: deleting user data from the title screen resets the account, the tutorial can be skipped after the first completion, and each account receives approximately 40 free pulls from the inbox. The reroll target should be Kitasan Black or Fine Motion, not a specific Uma.
Which Scenario to Start With
Three permanent Career scenarios are available on the Global server: URA Finals, Unity Cup, and Trackblazer.
URA Finals is the recommended starting scenario for new players. It has a fixed race objective structure across three years, a straightforward training calendar, and no additional mechanics. Players should complete several URA Finals runs until the core loop is comfortable.
Unity Cup, released in November 2025, introduces the Spirit Burst mechanic — a team-based training boost that produces higher stat totals than URA Finals when the conditions are met. Players should transition to Unity Cup after building two or three strong Legacy veterans and developing familiarity with Friendship Training.
Trackblazer, released in March 2026, is the current competitive meta scenario. Its mechanics differ substantially from both earlier scenarios and reward Race Bonus stat investment on Support Cards. It is recommended for players who have already established a functional Unity Cup progression before attempting Trackblazer.
Conclusion
The priority order for new players in Umamusume: Pretty Derby is as follows. Start with URA Finals to learn the core training loop. Select Oguri Cap with the beginner ticket. Build a Support Card deck using the recommended structure. Focus on reaching rainbow bond level with Support Card characters as quickly as possible. Allow the Legacy chain to develop across multiple runs before targeting competitive performance. Save Carats for Support Card banners rather than Uma banners.
Once the fundamentals are solid, Unity Cup and Trackblazer can be approached in sequence. Players who need to top up their Carat balance can do so through Umamusume top up on LootBar.
