So you're staring at the Spring Tenno Sho—that brutal 3200m Kyoto meat grinder—and wondering why your favorite horse girl is gasping for air at the final corner. It’s a common soul-crushing moment. You’ve got the speed, you’ve got the spirit, but the tank is empty. When it comes to the long-distance meta in 2026, "stamina" isn't just a number on a screen; it’s the difference between a legendary spurt and a pathetic jog to the finish line.
Finding out which Umamusume has the best stamina is actually a bit of a trick question. Do you mean the highest raw base stats? The best growth rates? Or the one who actually survives a marathon because her skills are basically a bottomless water bottle? Honestly, it depends on how you like to train, but a few names absolutely tower over the rest.
Manhattan Cafe: The 30% Growth Monster
If we are talking about raw potential to hit that 1200 cap (or higher in newer scenarios), Manhattan Cafe is basically in a league of her own. She is famously the only girl with a 30% Stamina growth bonus.
Think about that for a second. Most girls get a 10% or maybe a 20% bump in their primary stats. Cafe’s 30% means every time you click that blue training button, she’s soaking up gains like a sponge. You don't even really need a stack of Stamina support cards to get her to a respectable level. You can actually focus your deck on Speed and Power, and she’ll still likely out-stamina the rest of your roster just by existing.
She’s built for the shadows and the long haul. If you’re a trainer who hates "stamina checks" and wants a girl who naturally hits the threshold for the Arima Kinen without sweating, she’s your pick. Basically, she’s the "easy mode" for endurance builds.
Super Creek and the "Maestro" Tax
You can't talk about stamina without mentioning Super Creek. While her growth rates are solid (usually 10% Stamina and 20% Wits), her real power isn't in the raw stat—it's in her DNA.
Super Creek is synonymous with Swinging Maestro (Arc Maestro). In the current 2026 meta, this is still widely considered the most reliable gold recovery skill in the game. It triggers on a corner, it almost never fails, and it restores a massive chunk of "effective" stamina.
- The Math: A gold heal like Maestro is worth roughly 200-230 points of raw stamina.
- The Reality: An 800-stamina Super Creek with Maestro often outruns a 1000-stamina girl who has no recovery skills.
She’s a "mommy" character for a reason; she takes care of the endurance problem so you can focus on making her fast enough to actually win. If you don't have her SSR support card, training the character herself is the next best thing.
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Mejiro McQueen: The Long Distance Master
Then there’s the blue-blood herself. Mejiro McQueen is the classic choice, and for good reason. Her base stats and growth (usually 20% Stamina) are tailor-made for the "Stayers" category.
What makes McQueen special is how she handles the Lead/Pace Chaser roles. Running at the front of the pack drains energy faster than sitting in the middle. McQueen has the innate "Cooldown" skill and unique abilities that trigger exactly when the race gets tough. While Manhattan Cafe has the better growth, McQueen often has the better kit for actually winning the specific races that demand high stamina.
The Rice Shower Struggle (And Payoff)
We have to talk about Rice Shower. Poor Rice is known as the "Hero of the Stayer Races," but she is notoriously difficult to train. Her stamina isn't bad—it's actually quite high—but her training events can be a nightmare of bad moods and random setbacks.
However, if you manage to max out her potential (Potential 5), she starts with innate recovery skills that make her a demon in the 3000m+ range. She’s a "Pace Chaser" specialist. In 2026, many top-tier players are using her as a "debuffer" who also happens to have enough stamina to finish the race. She doesn't just survive; she makes sure everyone else runs out of breath before she does.
Wait, What About Special Week?
Don't sleep on the "Hopping ♪ Vitamin Heart" (Summer) version of Special Week. This variant is a stamina tank. Her unique skill, Dazzl'n ♪ Diver, provides a steady stream of healing and pacing.
While the OG Special Week is a great all-rounder, the Summer version is specifically tuned for Medium and Long-distance tracks. She usually sports a 15% Stamina growth and 15% Power growth, which is a killer combo. Power training actually gives you a small amount of Stamina too, so she’s double-dipping every time you train her muscles.
Actionable Stamina Benchmarks for Your Runs
Knowing who has the best stamina is only half the battle. You actually have to hit the numbers. If you're aimlessly clicking buttons, even Manhattan Cafe will fail. Here is the "cheat sheet" for the 2026 season requirements:
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- For 2000m - 2400m (Medium): Aim for 700-800 Stamina. If you have one gold recovery skill, you can get away with 600.
- For 3000m - 3200m (Long): You need 1000+ Stamina minimum. If you’re running a "Runner" (Escape) strategy, aim for 1100 plus at least one gold heal.
- Recovery Conversion: Roughly speaking, one Gold recovery skill = 200 Stamina. One White recovery skill = 50 Stamina.
Your Next Steps
To truly maximize your endurance, start by focusing on your Support Card deck. If you're training a girl like Mejiro McQueen or Manhattan Cafe, try a "3 Speed / 2 Stamina / 1 Wits" setup. Use the Super Creek SSR (the "Maestro" card) as your borrowed card if you don't own it. This ensures that no matter which Umamusume you pick, she’ll have the "Maestro" safety net to back up her natural stats. Once you've cleared the Tenno Sho (Spring) consistently, you can start swapping out Stamina cards for more Power to increase your overtaking speed.
Don't just look at the raw numbers on the character sheet; look at the Growth %. If a girl has 0% Stamina growth, you're going to need at least three Stamina support cards to make her viable for long races. If she's like Cafe with 30%, you can get away with one. Plan your deck around the girl, not the other way around.