Uma Musume Pretty Derby Season 2 (TV)

The series' premise is based on the history of the real Tokai Teio (1988-2013), who won nine races in his 12-race career from 1991 to 1993, as well as the Japanese Horse of the Year award in 1991.

In real life, Tokai Teio was a descendant of Symboli Rudolf (1981-2011).

For Tokai Teio's main racing costume, she wears one black glove to reference the original horse having three white legs and a black left front leg. The four buttons symbolize the horse's four G1 race wins.

Mayano Top Gun shares very little similarities with the racehorse (1992-2019) she is named after; instead, she is themed after the American film franchise Top Gun, from her use of fighter pilot jargon right down to her bomber jacket. Her yellow tank top references the racing silk worn by the jockeys that raced with the real racehorse, who won the Japanese Horse of the Year award in 1995. In 2022, Cygames used her for a cross-promotion between Uma Musume and Top Gun: Maverick.

The real Rice Shower (1989-1995) was nicknamed the "Assassin of Kanto" (関東の刺客, Kanto no Shikaku) and the "Black Assassin" (黒い刺客, Kuroi Shikaku) for his upset wins over Mihono Bourbon and Mejiro McQueen. The first nickname comes from the racehorse hailing from the Kanto region (Tokyo/Kanagawa/Chiba), and was coined by horse racing fans in the rival Kansai region (Osaka/Kyoto/Hyogo). Like in the anime, the horse's wins upset horse racing fans, as Mihono Bourbon was on the way to claim the Japanese Triple Crown (after winning the Satsuki Shō and the Tōkyō Yūshun), while Mejiro McQueen was aiming for three wins in a row. At the 1995 Takarazuka Kinen, Rice Shower fell and sustained a left front leg fracture and had to be euthanized due to the extent of the injury.

The opening theme "Yume o Kakeru" is named after the 1994 photobook Yume o Kakeru Tokai Teio (夢を駆けるトウカイティオー).

The racing costumes of all of the Mejiro uma musume feature the colors teal and white, which were used as the racing silks worn by the jockeys that raced with the real Mejiro Shouji Co. Ltd. horses.

Some of the horses from Mejiro Shouji Co. Ltd. were named after western celebrities and athletes: Mejiro McQueen (1987-2006) after actor Steve McQueen, Mejiro Palmer (1987-2012) after golf legend Arnold Palmer, and Mejiro Ryan (1987-2016) after baseball hall-of-famer Nolan Ryan.

Mihono Bourbon wears a cyberpunk racing costume as a reference to the real racehorse (1989-2017) being nicknamed the "Cyborg" for his precise, machine-like running pace that often resulted in exact furlong running times. The racehorse won seven out of eight races from 1991 to 1992 (losing only to Rice Shower), as well as the Japanese Horse of the Year award in 1992. The game version of Bourbon has an even more robotic personality.

Rice Shower's racing costume uses the blue and red colors of the racing silk worn by the jockeys that raced with the real racehorse. She wears a small bowler hat and carries a dagger that references the real racehorse being nicknamed the "Black Assassin".

A cardboard illustration of Hishi Amazon at the finish line of the Tracen Academy racetrack serves as a running joke from Season 1, when Amazon was tasked to hold a finish line sign during training sessions.

The Uma Musume Pretty Derby logo for this season features a silhouette of Tokai Teio.

The real Mejiro McQueen won 12 out of 21 races from 1990 to 1993 and was the first racehorse to earn over ¥1 billion. Like Tokai Teio, Mejiro McQueen was prone to injuries, having run only two races in 1992. He retired in October 1993 after being diagnosed with degenerative suspensory ligament desmitis.

Ikuno Dictus' racing costume uses the green and white colors of the racing silk worn by the jockeys that raced with the real racehorse (1987-2019), who won nine out of 51 races from 1989 to 1993. Despite not winning a G1 race, she was the first mare to earn over ¥500 million.

The real Kitasan Black (foaled March 10, 2012) won 12 out of 20 races from 2015 to 2017, as well as the Japanese Horse of the Year award in 2016 and 2017. The real Satono Diamond (foaled January 30, 2013) won eight out of 18 races from 2015 to 2018.

Daitaku Helios' racing costume uses the blue and yellow colors of the racing silk worn by the jockeys that raced with the real racehorse (1987-2008), who won 10 out of 35 races from 1989 to 1992. Her catchphrase: "Wei!" is the Mandarin Chinese way of saying hello over the telephone; this is in reference to voice actress Aya Yamane having parents of Chinese descent.

The real Mejiro Palmer won nine out of 38 races from 1989 to 1994. Both Mejiro McQueen and Mejiro Palmer were scheduled to race at the 1992 Takarazuka Kinen, but McQueen had to withdraw from the race and members of the Mejiro farm decided not to attend, despite Palmer eventually winning the race.

Biwa Hayahide's racing costume uses the purple and black colors and zigzag pattern of the racing silk worn by the jockeys that raced with the real racehorse (1990-2020), who won 10 out of 16 races from 1992 to 1994, as well as the Japanese Horse of the Year award in 1993. Her long white hair references how the racehorse was described as having a big head; some race commentators even joked that his face would help him win races. Hayahide wears eyeglasses as a reference to the red hood the racehorse wore before the 1993 Kobe Shimbun Hai. In real life, Biwa Hayahide and Narita Brian (1991-1998) were half-siblings through their dam (mother) Pacificus (1981-1999).

The opening race in episode 1 is based on the 1984 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby), which the real Symboli Rudolf won on his way to become the fourth racehorse to claim the Japanese Triple Crown.

In episode 1, Air Groove is startled when a fan takes a flash photo of her. This is based on an incident when the real Air Groove (1993-2013) sustained a leg injury after she was frightened by flash cameras around her before a race; as a result, the JRA banned flash photography within racetracks.

In episode 3, the old man standing next to Gold Ship during the Hanshin Daishoten is based on Takatoshi Imanami, who groomed the real Gold Ship (foaled March 6, 2009).

Mejiro Palmer's win in episode 7 is based on the 1992 Arima Kinen, when both the real Palmer and Daitaku Helios had a massive lead over the rest of the field until they both started to lose momentum on the final stretch. Helios, who was never trained for long distance races, was immediately lost in the pack while Palmer managed to win the race, despite being the 15th favorite to win.

The race in episode 10 is based on the 1993 Sankei Sho All Comers, which was a G3 race before it was upgraded to G2 in 1995. The real Twin Turbo (1988-1998) only won six races in his 36-race career from 1991 to 1996; none of which were above G3. He gained popularity for his extreme front-running style, which often caused him to burn out and lose to the rest of the field.

The race in episode 13 is based on the 1993 Arima Kinen, which is known as the "Tokai Teio Miracle" as the racehorse won after being sidelined with a leg injury for one year.