Uma Musume: Pretty Derby currently has a free SSR ticket that you can claim right now for fast access to all base game horse girls like Special Week, Tokai Teio, Oguri Cap, and Rice Shower. It’s hard to figure out which Uma Musume is the best at the start, which is why this guide will help you decide who you should pick first.

Best Starter in Uma Musume: Pretty Derby

While the actual character you get doesn’t matter too much since Support Cards have a larger impact on gameplay, some of the SSR horses do have a slight edge over the others. Currently, the best choices for your SSRs are a toss-up between Oguri Cap, Taiki Shuttle, and Maruzensky.

• Oguri Cap is currently considered the best possible choice, as she possesses multiple aptitudes for most race types. She can excel at mile, medium, and long-distance races, while also being proficient at pace and late strategies. She’s the most well-rounded racer in the game and a good starter.
• Taiki Shuttle is one of the few SSR Dirt track racers in the game and is a great pick for the Dirt slot in Team Races. She also excels at sprint to mile distances, but she only does well as a pace chaser.
• Maruzensky is also a great all-rounder character who can cover most distances, from sprints to long-distance races.

Which Is More Important: Trainees or Support Cards?

Ultimately, having an SSR trainee doesn’t matter as much as getting all the meta support cards in the game, as you can reliably win the URA Finals with just one start trainee. However, the support cards you have matter way more, as these determine how your Career mode training progresses. If you have low-level cards, winning a Career run will be extremely difficult, even with an SSR trainee.

If you have a favorite trainee before using the free SSR ticket, such as Tokai Teio and Special Week, it’s fine to use your ticket for them if you wish. However, try to spend all your Carats on Support Cards if possible.