Chocobo Racing Guide and Best Chocobo

Chocobo Racing is a minigame available in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth (FF7 Rebirth). Find out the best Chocobo for racing and how to unlock all Chocobos, tips to win, and rewards in this guide!

Best Chocobo for Racing

Use Piko for Versatility

Piko	Speed Burst - Temporarily increase your speed. Maintain top speed for long enough to become invincible and knock rivals out of the way.

Piko is one of the most versatile chocobos in terms of speed and defense. Its Speed Burst ability is extremely powerful as it not only grants you speed but also the ability to push through enemies while activated. As the earliest chocobo you can get, you don't have to worry about unlocking it as well.

Use Fango to Avoid Obstacles

Fango	Chocojump - Jump high into the air to extend flight time or avoid obstacles. The shockwave made on landing knocks down nearby rivals.

Fango is a great chocobo to use on maps with several obstacles. With its Chocojump ability, you can simply jump over these obstacles during the race.

Use Aponi to Fly Over Obstacles and Take Shortcuts

Aponi	Hoverbird - Glide just above the ground to avoid rough terrain, traps, and out-of-bounds penalties.

Like Fango, Aponi is also great for avoiding obstacles, especially those that can make you fall. With Hoverbird, you can fly a short distance and even take shortcuts without getting slowed down by terrain.

Take Advantage of Mecha-Chocobo's High Speed

Mecha-Chocobo	Birdserk - Become encased in electricity and run wild, during which pressing unleashes electrical attacks on those in the vicinity. The gauge depletes faster upon using said attacks.

The Mecha-Chocobo has the highest speed among all available Chocobo in-game. However, unlike the others, you cannot equip any gears on it, meaning you must rely solely on its base stats. Despite this setback, it remains a viable option for races, especially if you're unable to purchase some of the Chocobo Gears or have yet to unlock the best ones, such as the Hyperion Set.

You can unlock the Mecha-Chocobo by completing the Can't Stop, Won't Stop Side Quest.

List of All Chocobo

Chocobo/Region	Stats/Ability
Piko Grasslands	Speed Burst - Temporarily increase your speed. Maintain top speed for long enough to become invincible and knock rivals out of the way.
Belle Junon	Rock Solid - Enhance traction and prevent being your knocked back during collisions.
Kyma Corel	Birdshot - Once the gauge is full, gain the ability to fire up to three blasts that travel in a straight line and send any rivals they collide with reeling.
Fango Gongaga	Chocojump - Jump high into the air to extend flight time or avoid obstacles. The shockwave made on landing knocks down nearby rivals.
Aponi Cosmo Canyon	Hoverbird - Glide just above the ground to avoid rough terrain, traps, and out-of-bounds penalties
Selena Nibel	Chocobubble - Once the gauge is full, gain the ability to fire a watery blast that homes in on its target.
Mecha-Chocobo Corel	Birdserk - Become encased in electricity and run wild, during which pressing unleashes electrical attacks on those in the vicinity. The gauge depletes faster upon using said attacks.

Chocobo Locations in All Regions

Chocobo Racing Tips

Equip Your Chocobo With Gear

Certain Chocobo Gear happen to have a special skill that benefits your mount for the Chocobo Races. Feel free to style up your Chocobo as you please, or take advantage of various skills attached to certain pieces.

Best Chocobo Gear

Have Recovery Dash Equipped

If one of your Chocobo Gear has the skill "Recovery Dash", equip it immediately to your Chocobo. This skill makes your Chocobo accelerate when going offroad during the race, which makes it a very powerful skill during the race.

Perform a Start Dash

A Start Dash is a speed boost that helps you accelerate at the start of the race. Timing the press of R2 as the countdown times down to 2 will trigger a Start Dash, but the timing is rather strict.

Practice Chocobo Drifting

Hold the left analog stick to where you want to turn while pressing R2 to drift with your Chocobo. This is an essential technique to master to deal with the sharp turns without losing speed.

Drift Longer, Move Faster

The longer you allow your Chocobo to drift, the faster it can go. Sparks will begin to fly from the Chocobo's talons, so look out for its color as a visual cue.

No Acceleration	Low Acceleration	High Acceleration

Use Shortcuts

There are a couple of shortcuts that can be used in the racetrack by drifting over it. This can cut several seconds of race time and slip past fellow racers into a higher position.

Chocobo Racing Rewards

Rewards for Each Race

Hall of Famer Bronze Trophy

Bronze	Hall of Famer
	Win all chocobo races. ・Chocobo Races Minigame Guide

Placing 1st in all the Chocobo Races rewards the player with a Bronze Trophy for the Hall of Famer achievement.

How to Unlock All Trophies

How to Play Chocobo Racing

Race Against Other Chocobos

Chocobo Races is a minigame where players can ride Chocobo, and enjoy racing against other riders. Optimize the Chocobo equipment, techniques, and items to get first place in the race.

Pick Up Balloons to Go Faster

The blue icon at the lower left of the screen is called a "Speed Ballons", where players can collect up to a limit of 10 balloons to go faster in the race.

The Yellow icon is the "Dash Balloon," while the red icon is called the "Ability Balloon."

Two Charges of Dash Balloons

Picking up Dash Balloons on the course fills up the gauge and provides a charge to activate a Dash to boost your speed. Press R1 once a charge is available, and do not hesitate to use it frequently; you can store up to 2 charges of Dash at a time.

Ability Balloons Help Win Races

Picking up Ability Balloons increase the Ability Gauge, and once filled up you can press L1 to activate Speed Burst and go even faster.

How to Unlock Chocobo Racing

Progress the Main Story through Chapter 8

Chocobo Racing is first encountered as part of the main story in Chapter 8.

After completing Chapter 8, the player is free to return to the Gold Saucer to play more Chocobo Racing courses.

Chapter 8: All That Glitters Walkthrough

Complete Side Quests to Unlock Gold Cup

You can also unlock more tracks by competing in the Gold Cup. To enter this, you must complete both the Esoteric Secrets of the Elders Side Quest and the Gold Cup or Bust Side Quest. Since these are branching side quests, you need to complete both to unlock the Gold Cup.

List of All Side Quests

FF7 Rebirth Related Guides

List of All Available Minigames

All Minigame Guides

All Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Minigames
Piano Minigame	Hustle de Chocobo
Moogle MIschief	Dolphin Show Minigame
Junon Parade and All 7th Infantry Locations	Fort Condor
Cactuar Caper and All Cactuar Locations	Run Wild
Card Carnival (Costa del Sol Queen's Blood Challenges)	Pirate's Rampage
Wheelie Rendezvous	Minecart Adventure
G-Bike Minigame	Desert Rush
Galactic Saviors	3D Brawler
Chocobo Races	Musclehead Colosseum
Jumpfrog	Crunch-Off
Glide de Chocobo	Cactuar Crush
Gears and Gambits	Gold Saucer Queen's Blood Challenges