The Fighting Dojo was first seen in theGeneration I games, positioned to the west of theSaffron Gym. In these early games, it was established that Saffron City once had twoGyms, but the Fighting Dojo lost its Gym status after losing a unification match to the Saffron Gym. Due to thetype advantage that Saffron Gym'sPsychic-type Pokémon had over the Fighting Dojo's Fighting-type Pokémon, Saffron Gym easily won and became the official gym.
Although noBadge can be won in the Dojo, the unofficial Gym remains open and continues to accept challenges. FourBlack Belts test theplayer's abilities before the player can challenge their master, theKarate Master. The reward for defeating him is a choice betweenHitmonlee orHitmonchan; both Pokémon are at level 30.
Unlike other Gyms, the Fighting Dojo has a simple design which has not changed much over the generations. Between its appearances from the Generation I games toPokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the Dojo has maintained a wooden floor with no mazes or puzzles to solve. Pure strength and battle strategy is needed to succeed in here.
The two banners on the wall of the Dojo read "Struggle for vengeance!" and "A complicated fracture."
Generation II
Everyone Welcome! Fighting Dojo
The most significant change in theGeneration II games is that no Trainers can be battled here. Only one student remains, and he informs the player that the master of the Dojo has gone toJohto'sMt. Mortar to train. In thisgeneration, the master of the Dojo is known as the Karate King, and his name isKiyo (Japanese: ノブヒコNobuhiko). The sign outside the Dojo indicates that anyone is welcome to use it.
At the Dojo, there are two scrolls behind the student that say "What goes around comes around!" and "Enemies on every side!"
The student at the Dojo also informs theplayer that theGym Leaders ofKanto and Johto are allowed to use the Dojo to holdrematches with them, much like how theSinnoh Gym Leaders can be found for a rematch at theBattleground inPokémon Platinum. However, unlike Platinum, the Leaders will not arrive at the Dojo until they have been called on for a rematch.
According to theradio show "That Town, These People", the Fighting Dojo is the second-best location inSaffron City. Trainers who enjoy Pokémon battles can gather and converse at the Dojo.
Generation VII
Fighting Dojo
The Fighting Dojo challenge inPokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! is similar to FireRed and LeafGreen, including the final opponent being named Koichi, though a small difference is that he uses the Trainer class Karate Master (Japanese: からてだいおうGreat Karate King) instead of Black Belt. The Hitmonlee or Hitmonchan the player can receive are placed back at level 30 to better fit with the game's level curve, and the burden of choice is lessened, as the player can catch more Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan atVictory Road as rare spawns. In addition, the Dojo has an additionalCoach Trainer who will reward them withTM23 (Thunder Punch). After the player becomesChampion, twoMasterBlack Belts can be found here who, fittingly, specialize in Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
The Dojo debuted inPasta La Vista!, being incorrectly referred to as the "Pokémon Dojo" in the Englishdub. The Dojo's leader,Master Hamm, wanted his sonKyle to take over the Dojo, but Kyle wanted to run his noodle restaurant instead. They decided to have aPokémon battle to settle their differences, but Master Hamm blew his back during the battle, preventing him from finishing the fight. As such, he chose to letAsh fight in his stead, while Kyle choseMay to battle in his place. After a bit of sparring to get used to Master Hamm and Kyle'sFighting-type Pokémon, Ash and May restarted the battle. However, the battle was interrupted again, this time byTeam Rocket, who tried to steal the Fighting-type Pokémon for themselves, but were stopped byTerri. In the end, Master Hamm let Kyle follow his dream of selling noodles, appointing Terri as his successor instead.
The Dojo reappeared inSolitary and Menacing!, when Ash visited it to battle theKarate Master, implying in the process that Terri stepped down as the master at some point prior toPokémon Journeys: The Series. While there,Goh struggled to choose between getting aHitmonlee or aHitmonchan. When Ash went to battle the Karate Master, he discovered he'd just been beaten byBea and had aWorld Coronation Series battle against her, only to be defeated. Afterwards, Goh successfully defeated the Karate Master and received aHitmonchan as a prize.
Hitmonlee was used to battle Kyle'sHitmonchan, but because Master Hamm's back hurt, the battle was canceled. Later, Hitmonlee was used by Ash to battle May and Hitmonchan.
Kyle used hisHitmonchan in the fight for the dojo. The battle was canceled because Kyle's father and opponent,Master Hamm, started feeling pain in his back. Hitmonchan was later used byMay in a battle againstAsh, who used Master Hamm'sHitmonlee.
The Fighting Dojo houses multipleHitmonchan, which are given to challengers who emerge victorious against the Karate Master.Goh was able to winone for himself.
Red visited the Fighting Dojo inFile 3: Giovanni, soon after defeatingSabrina. He defeated the Karate Master off-screen, obtaining hisHitmonlee orHitmonchan as a prize of his victory.
In the manga
The Fighting Dojo in Pokémon ZenshoThe Fighting Dojo interior inPokémon Zensho
Pokémon Zensho
The Fighting Dojo appeared inPZ07, whereSatoshi was invited there by theDojo Master. He told the young Trainer howShigeru, Satoshi'srival, had recently beatenSabrina, and she was now trying to sneak into theSilph Co. building in order to save company fromTeam Rocket.
Fighting Dojo Cards listed with ablue background are only legal to use in the currentExpanded format. Cards listed with agreen background are legal to use in both the currentStandard andExpanded formats.
Morty is the only Gym Leader that uses multiple Pokémon of the same species in his rematch, with his twoGengar.
Clair is the only Gym Leader that does not use anyHoenn orSinnoh Pokémon in her rematch.
She is also the only Gym Leader (other than Blue, who does not specialize in a type) to use Pokémon not of her type specialty in her rematch.
Erika andSabrina pay out lower amounts ofprize money after their rematches than they do after their respectiveGym battles.
InGeneration IV, while theplayer is in the Fighting Dojo, all Gym Leaders will respond to acall by saying that they are getting bad reception and suggest that the player call from a different place.
The Gym Leaders fromJohto all appear on the left side of the Dojo, while the Gym Leaders fromKanto appear on the right side. This is most likely meant to represent the position of the two differentregions that the Gym Leaders come from.
