The recombination ability of the breeding material is an important feature that must be taken into account when cultivars involve in hybridization. The recombination ability of the basic seed millet material was established based on the analysis of long-term data on cross-breeding combinations and the output of promising lines in a competitive test. The analysis showed that not all varieties of the Orenburg breeding, both in direct and reverse crosses, had a high coefficient of recombination potential. Based on the results obtained, the varieties that are better included in the hybridization as the mother line were identified, since the coefficient of recombination ability is higher in direct crosses. Also there were varieties which is advisable to inclusion in the breeding process only in reverse crosses.