Every Dragon Ball Tournament’s Strongest Character, Ranked

Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball has featured hundreds of fights that frequently push characters past their limits and beyond their comfort zones. Many of these fights play out in the heat of the moment where anything goes and there are dire stakes. However, one of Dragon Ball’s longest-running traditions is competitive martial arts tournaments where characters showcase their strength in organized matches. Dragon Ball’s 21st World Martial Arts Tournament was such an exciting turning point for the series that ushered in a new age of competitive combat that’s been featured in every Dragon Ball series and even several feature films.




These martial arts tournaments typically assemble the strongest fighters imaginable, but there’s also incredible diversity between these disparate duelists. Dragon Ball understands how to generate suspense through these competitions and that the fighter who audiences expect or want to see come out victorious isn’t always the winner. The final round of every competition is usually full of surprises and it’s interesting to examine who is the strongest character in each of Dragon Ball’s many tournaments.



10 Master Roshi, As Jackie Chun, Proves Why He’s Become A World Tournament Legend

21st World Martial Arts Tournament

Dragon Ball’s 21st World Martial Arts Tournament is a rousing success that becomes a series staple and Dragon Ball’s most popular event. This competition becomes an exciting opportunity for Goku and Krillin to prove how much stronger they’ve become after their training with Master Roshi. Krillin and Yamcha both do impressive work, but the 21st World Tournament’s final match is between Goku and Master Roshi, the latter of whom fights under his alias, Jackie Chun. Goku, despite being a child, proves to be remarkably resilient against this accomplished martial arts master. Goku exhibits incredible physical strength and endurance, but he’s still no match for Master Roshi.


Roshi utilizes some genuinely dangerous techniques, like his Thunder Shock Surprise, and devises a brilliant strategy to neutralize Goku’s Great Ape transformation without actually hurting Goku. The final stage of their fight comes down to physical blows and traditional martial arts, rather than energy attacks, and Roshi narrowly wins the competition. In terms of strength, Goku is probably quite close to Master Roshi and it’s easy to imagine different circumstances where Goku emerges as the tournament’s victor. However, Roshi’s superior attack arsenal, strategic skills, and fighting experience still put him above Goku. It’s likely the last time that Master Roshi is actually stronger than Goku before the young boy reaches unbelievable heights.


9 Grandpa Gohan Is The Only Supernatural Opponent Who Can Top Goku’s Talents

Fortuneteller Baba Tournament

A masked Grandpa Gohan smacks Goku around by his tail in Dragon Ball.

The Fortuneteller Baba Tournament is a playful way for Dragon Ball to fit in an extra competition as a creative way for the characters to prepare for the impending 22nd World Tournament. Fortuneteller Baba, Master Roshi’s sister, assembles a team of other worldly warriors that include a vampire, a mummy, an invisible man, a devil, and a ghost. Many of these battles are actually played for laughs, especially Upa and Puar’s battle against Fangs or Yamcha’s altercation with See-Through. Spike the Devil Man is actually an intimidating opponent and it’s revealed that he’s won two World Tournaments in the past, which further reinforces his strength. It’s unclear who exactly would win in a purely physical fight between Goku and Spike.


However, the devil’s signature and strongest technique – his Devilmite Beam – is completely ineffective against Goku because he doesn’t possess any evil in his heart. Goku does show signs of struggling against Baba’s final fighter, a cryptic masked man who is actually Grandpa Gohan’s ghost. Grandpa Gohan confidently matches Goku’s Kamehameha with his own and he proves to be superior when it comes to physical combat. Grandpa Gohan bashes Goku around so much by his tail that he actually severs the appendage. Goku is technically declared the winner when Grandpa Gohan forfeits, but Gohan holds the advantage through the entire fight and is the stronger fighter. He benefits from decades of experience and even more intensive training under Master Roshi.


8 Tien Brings Honor To The Crane School Of Martial Arts In His World Tournament Victory

22nd World Martial Arts Tournament

Tien holds Goku by the neck in Dragon Ball's 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament.

Dragon Ball’s 21st World Martial Arts Tournament is a satisfying start to this tradition, but the 22nd World Tournament trumps it in every regard and remains one of the franchise’s most captivating competitions. There’s an impressive roster of powerful fighters who participate in this tournament, which includes Goku, Krillin, Yamcha, Master Roshi, Man-Wolf, as well as new competitors, Chiaotzu and Tien. Goku once again makes it the tournament’s final round and his big battle against Tien is even more strenuous than what he experienced in the 21st World Tournament. Goku and Tien are nearly evenly matched when it comes to their physical strength.


However, this is another situation where the opponent’s special attacks give him the advantage and make him the deadlier individual. Tien benefits from the Solar Flare, Dodon Ray, Tri-Beam, and Four Witches Technique, which are all phenomenal skills that are uniquely beneficial. Goku survives against these attacks and continues to get a lot of success out of his Kamehameha. The final fight is incredibly close and Tien arguably only wins because of luck, but he’s still the strongest individual in the 22nd World Tournament.

7 Piccolo Is The Superior Fighter Even If He’s Not Crowned The Winner

23rd World Martial Arts Tournament

Piccolo breaks Goku’s limbs in original Dragon Ball's 23rd World Tournament.


It’s rather cathartic that the original Dragon Ball‘s final story arc brings Goku, Krillin, and Yamcha back to the World Martial Arts Tournament for an extremely important ceremony. There is no shortage of powerful competitors in this martial arts tournament between Cyborg Tao, Tien, Chi-Chi, and Kami, who co-opts a human’s body to keep a low profile. There’s heavy emotional resonance to this competition, which ultimately boils down to a battle between Piccolo — Demon King Piccolo’s offspring — and Goku, who is responsible for the original Piccolo’s death. The 23rd World Tournament is significant for being the first and only installment of the competition that Goku wins. Goku demonstrates remarkable growth during this tournament and it’s the first time that he truly feels like an adult.


Goku strategically makes use of his flight and Kamehameha skills in order to survive Piccolo’s onslaught. There’s no question that he’s incredibly powerful, but it also seems like he gets a little lucky during this encounter and that Piccolo is the stronger fighter, even if he’s not the winner. Piccolo’s Demon Hand, Super Giant-Form transformation, and the myriad of energy attacks that he has at his disposal are highly dangerous and could likely get the upper hand against Goku under different circumstances. Goku’s victory becomes even more impressive when taking into consideration that Piccolo is more powerful.

6 Gohan’s Super Saiyan 2 Ascension Helps Him Save The Planet

Cell Games


Cell is one of Dragon Ball Z‘s most fascinating villains and someone who doesn’t always get his due. He’s an antagonist who is so confident in his perfected power that he decides to recreate the World Martial Arts Tournament — albeit with some deadly revisions — to give the world a proper chance at his destruction. The Cell Games feature all of Dragon Ball Z‘s strongest fighters, such as Goku, Gohan, Vegeta, Future Trunks, Piccolo, Krillin, Tien, and Android 16. From very early on it becomes quite obvious that a Super Saiyan will be the one to win this competition, but the Cell Games take a surprising turn. Goku technically defeats Cell and proves to be superior to Dr.Gero’s ultimate creation, but Gohan’s power is even more extreme and he becomes the first character to ascend to Super Saiyan 2 status.


Super Saiyan 2 Gohan’s power completely dwarfs Perfect Cell and the villain stoops to a terrifying self-destruct maneuver that Goku intercepts. Cell returns as Super Perfect Cell and his new power is nearly on par with Gohan. Cell has one of the most creative attack arsenals, which is made up of the heroes’ strongest abilities, including Piccolo’s Namekian regeneration. Despite these many advantages, Super Saiyan 2 Gohan still stands out as the superior fighter and someone who is strong enough to defeat Cell, once and for all.

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Every Dragon Ball Tournament, Ranked

Dragon Ball is an action-packed anime that’s full of combat, but it also prioritizes tournament battle, some of which hit harder than others!

5 Goku Proudly Represents The North Galaxy Against Dozens Of Deceased Competitors

Other World Tournament

Super Kaio-Ken Goku punches out Pikkon during the Other World Tournament in Dragon Ball Z filler.


The Other World Tournament may be an anime-exclusive filler event, but it’s still an exciting Dragon Ball martial arts competition that introduces some compelling characters, like the West Galaxy’s Pikkon. It makes sense that Dragon Ball‘s sprawling Other World would have a sanctioned event where the strongest fallen fighters can compete against one another. The event is held by the Grand Kai, who rules over the entire universe, and each Kai selects the strongest fighters from their galaxy to represent them in battle. Some of the Other World Tournament’s standout fighters are the South Galaxy’s Torbie, the East Galaxy’s Arqua, the West Galaxy’s Maraikoh, and the North Galaxy’s Olibu.


These are entertaining and unique fighters, but it’s soon very clear that Goku and Pikkon are the Other World Tournament’s strongest fighters. Goku and Pikkon have a fairly even match that’s even declared a tie when everything is said and done. Pikkon has several powerful elemental-based techniques and he’s able to hold his own against Goku’s Super Saiyan strength once he removes his weighted clothing and fights at full power. Events that precede the tournament also highlight that Pikkon is strong enough to defeat Cell, Frieza, and King Cold with ease. This is definitely power that’s on par with Goku, but it seems like Goku gains a very slight advantage through the application of his Super Kaio-Ken Attack.

4 Goku Stands Tall Despite Not Getting The Chance To Truly Fight

25th World Martial Arts Tournament

Vegeta gets angry at Goku and grabs him by the collar during the 25th World Tournament in Dragon Ball Z.


The 25th World Martial Arts Tournament is the first official World Tournament that’s experienced in Dragon Ball Z. This competition is an anomaly for many reasons and its activities largely fall apart due to Babidi’s Majin invasion and his efforts to awaken Buu. The tournament’s strongest fighters — such as Shin, Kibito, Gohan, Vegeta, and Goku — all resign in order to protect the planet. This leaves Android 18 and Hercule Satan as the World Tournament’s runner-up and winner.

Goku doesn’t get to really showcase his power in the 25th World Tournament, but this doesn’t change the fact that he’s still the strongest individual who is involved in these proceedings. Vegeta would be a close second here, due to Gohan being out of practice when it comes to combat. However, Goku harbors the secret that he’s actually attained Super Saiyan 3 status during his years in Other World. Goku doesn’t reveal this transformation until his battle against Buu, but he still could have done it in the 25th World Tournament and likely defeated every other opponent at once.


28th World Martial Arts Tournament

Goku fights Uub in the 28th World Martial Arts Tournament in Dragon Ball Z.

Dragon Ball Z boldly follows up Kid Buu’s destruction with a ten-year time-skip that centers around a touching reunion that coincides with the 28th World Martial Arts Tournament. The joy of this martial arts competition is to see how much characters have changed in the past decade and the events of the tournament are actually rather brief. There are some unusual participants in the 28th World Tournament, such as Captain Chicken and Otokosuki, the likes of which can’t compare to Dragon Ball‘s established heroes like Goku, Vegeta, Trunks, and Goten. Goku becomes incredibly taken by the power of a young boy contestant, Uub, who he’s determined to face in combat.


Uub, even though he’s just a ten-year-old boy, does a commendable job against Goku, which leaves Goku in awe of his potential. Goku recognizes that Uub is actually the kind-hearted reincarnation of Kid Buu and he becomes so excited to refine his powers and train him to be Earth’s greatest hero that they prematurely leave the World Tournament. It’s safe to say that Goku is still the strongest fighter out of these participants — although Vegeta’s strength is never shown — but it’s entirely possible that Uub has the potential to surpass Goku’s skills with the right training.


2 Hit’s Time-Skip Technique Is Too Much For Goku’s Greatest Efforts

Tournament Of Destroyers

Goku and Hit are fighting during the Tournament of Destroyers in Dragon Ball Super.

Dragon Ball Super’s Tournament of Destroyers between Universes 7 and 6 is a great precursor to the grander multiversal battle royale that occurs in the Tournament of Power. Universe 6’s introduction is full of impressive fighters, but Botamo, Cabba, Auta Magetta, and Frost are no match for Goku and Vegeta’s superior Saiyan strength. Hit, a legendary assassin from Universe 6, flummoxes Vegeta with his Time-Skip Technique. This advantageous skill allows Hit to skip over microseconds of time in order to disorient his opponent. Goku devises a passable, yet exhausting, strategy against Hit where he combines his Super Saiyan Blue strength with his Kaio-Ken Attack.


Blue Kaio-Ken helps Goku at least make contact with Hit, but the Saiyan can see that the writing is on the wall and that this isn’t a sustainable approach. An all-out fight between the two of them will result in death, which Goku wants to avoid, so he forfeits the battle. Goku’s Blue Kaio-Ken use triggers delayed onset ki disorder in him and his body is left in poor condition. However, Goku and Hit’s rematch before the Tournament of Power proves just how much Goku has grown in this short period of time. Of course, Beerus would insist that it’s actually Monaka who is the strongest Tournament of Destroyers fighter.

1 Universe 11’s Jiren Is A Phenomenal Fighter Who Requires Universe 7’s Collective Talents To Be Defeated

Tournament of Power


The Tournament of Power assembles dozens of individuals from across the multiverse who are forced to fight for their universe’s survival. There have never been higher stakes for a martial arts tournament and this competition comes down to far more than just bragging rights. Universe 7 is actually ranked as one of the weakest universes among the eight that are in competition, yet Goku’s team emerges with some of the strongest fighters. Universe 3’s Anilaza, Universe 6’s Kefla, Universe 2’s Ribrianne, and Universe 11’s Top are all exceptionally powerful.

That being said, Universe 11’s Jiren is undeniably the Tournament of Power’s strongest fighter. His strength reaches properly intimidating power levels when he ascends to Full Power and Super Full Power status. Ultra Instinct Goku gives Jiren a genuine struggle, but the Pride Trooper still holds strong. It’s a collective tag team effort from Goku, Frieza, and Android 17 – with previous support from Vegeta – that makes Jiren’s defeat possible. Universe 7 still barely manages to eliminate Jiren, even with superior numbers. Jiren would easily win in any one-on-one tournament battle.


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