Summary
- Pikachu has a battle win rate of 89% in 538 battles, proving to be Ash's strongest Pokemon.
- Greninja showcases a win rate of 87% in 55 battles, transforming into Ash-Greninja to secure victories.
- Goodra boasts a win rate of 88% in 16 battles, defeating opponents with its powerful Dragon-type moves.
On his journey to becoming aPokemon Master, Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town has come a long way, venturing across many different regions of the world and catching tons of powerful Pokemon in the process. Ash has always had a knack for bringing out the true potential of partners. Together, he and his Pokemon have ventured across various lands, faced countless trials, and battled a vast assortment of trainers and Pokemon, tobecome a Pokemon Master.
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Ash's mission to be the very best finally came to a close when he ranked first in the World Championships, defeating the most powerful trainers from across all regions. Now that his journey is over, it makes perfect sense to look atall of Ash's strongest Pokemon and determine his most powerful partners, which would make him almost impossible to defeat.
Updated March 5, 2025 by Ben Painter: Ash Ketchum may no longer be the main protagonist of the Pokemon anime, but he still holds a special place in fans' hearts, with that tag now belonging to Roy and Liko in Pokemon: Horizons. From his journey starting back in 1999, Ash caught 59 Pokemon, a far cry from catching them all, but that tagline was dropped from the series early on.
Ash had a tendency to not fully evolve a lot of his Pokemon, but he proved many times that he did not need to, and they still performed admirably in battle. This update adds five more ofAsh Ketchum's strongest Pokemonto the list.
35 Naganadel
Battle Win Rate: 50% (1/2)
- Defining moment: Defeating Lucario in the final battle against Kukui in the Manalo Conference.
With Ultra Beasts introduced in Generation 7 ofPokemon, it made sense for Ash to have one in his team for the Alola region. This came in the form of Naganadel or its pre-evolved form of Polipole.
The Poison/Dragon-type was not a main member of his team, only really being a part of its team from a storytelling perspective. It did take part in two major battles during its tenure on Ash's roster. This came in the final of the Manalo conference, where it defeated Professor Kukui's Lucario but fell in the following battle to Tapu Koko. A criminally underused Pokemon that didn't reach its full potential.
34 Talonflame
Battle Win Rate: 50% (9/18)
- Defining moment: Evolving into Talonflame and taking on a wild Moltres.
Talonflame was the token Flying-type of the Kalos region, and it became a vital part of Ash's team. Easily, its best moment was going toe-to-toe with a wild Moltres, a legendary Fire bird. Although it didn't win that battle, it more than certainly held its own against a stronger foe.
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It had some use in the Pokemon gym's taking on Wulfric's Avalugg and Korrina's Machoke, which were important in the Pallet Town trainer's X&Y adventure. There was a sense that Talonflame's impact was overshadowed by Ash's other Fire/Flying-type Charizard and Swellow, who came in so clutch for Ash in Hoenn.
33 Gible
Battle Win Rate: 50% (2/4)
- Defining moment: Mastering Draco Meteor and defeating Shuckle and then Dusknoir in the Lily of the Valley Conference
This is perhaps the worst example of Ash not evolving his Pokemon,the first of the powerful Dragon-type that he owned.Gible evolved into the pseudo-legendary Pokemon Garchomp, an insanely strong 'mon and the signature of Sinnoh Champion Cynthia. Ash kept his Gible in its base state, but it did prove to be a powerful, albeit underused, battler.
After many failed attempts, its key moment was mastering the move Draco Meteor, which was used successfully to aid in Ash's battle against Conway and advance him into the next round. It is a shame that Gible is rarely seen again once Ash departs for Unova and leaves all of his Sinnoh Pokemon behind.
32 Glalie
Battle Win Rate: 50% (3/6)
- Defining moment: Defeating Morrison's Metang to advance Ash into the next round of the Ever Grande Conference.
Ash did not use a great deal of Ice-type Pokemon, the other being Lapras, who was not used much in battle.Glaliewas caught by Ash as a Snorunt and, initially, it had no control over its Ice moves. With some help from the Pallet Town trainer, it got over it.
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Glalie was a late addition to Ash's Hoenn team, and it was used by him in the Ever Grande Conference. It played an important part in overcoming Clark's Quilava and Charizard, and Morrison's Metang, despite its weakness to Fire and Steel-types. After Hoenn, Glalie was not used at all by Ash in battle. It went out with a bang, defeating the strong Metang, and then was forcibly retired from battling.
31 Quilava
Battle Win Rate: 50% (9/18)
- Defining moment: Evolving into Quilava, learning Eruption, and defeating Team Rocket.
Quilavais a rare example of one of Ash's Pokemon that evolved after the region it was initially caught in. As a Cyndaquil, it was a core member of Ash's Johto team and took part in many major battles, such as defeating Bugsy's Scyther in the Azalea Gym and Jasmine's Steelix in the Olivine Gym.
During Sinnoh's Lily of the Valley Conference, Cyndaquil was recalled by Ash to help him in the finals. There it evolved into Quilava to defeat Team Rocket, mastering its newly learned Eruption move. Ash then took Quilava into battle against Nando and his powerful Armaldo.The Fire-type defeated that Pokemon but was also knocked out in the battle, resulting in a tie.
30 Dragonite
Battle Win Rate: 50% (4/8)
- Defining moment: Defeating Korrina's Mega Lucario to win Ash the battle and promote him up to the Great Class.
Ash was never one to go for strong Dragon-type Pokemon when it came to his regional team. What is even stranger is that, except for Goodra, Ash had no other pseudo-legendaries on his team. This is why fans were stoked to seeAsh finally catch a Dragonite inPokemon Journeys. Dragonite joined Ash's team with a banger episode that saw it evolve from a Dragonair into a Dragonite to save him from falling.
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Ash's Dragonite was a powerhouse, but it did not get to shine as much as it deserved. However, it still played a key role during the World Coronation arc. Ash's Dragonite had a powerful move set, including Draco Meteor, Hurricane, Dragon Claw, Dragon Dance, and Hyper Beam. It reigned victorious over Goh's Golurk, Korrina's Meinshao and Mega Lucario, Iris's Haxorus, and Leon's Dragapult.
29 Gengar
Battle Win Rate: 54% (7/14)
- Defining moment: Defeating Leon's Inteleon in the Masters Tournament.
Ash caught hisGengarin the final series,Pokemon Journeys, and he was a valued member of his team. Despite some losses early on during his time with Ash, Gengar had a change of fortune later on, defeating Paul's Metagross, Stephen's Aggron, and Leon's Inteleon.
The Ghost-type has been a fan favorite for many years, and it was awesome to finally see Ash Ketchum use a Gengar in his team. Gengar has shown its capabilities to Gigantamax, adding some extra bulk to its battles. Dazzling Gleam, Will-O-Wisp, Shadow Ball, and Sludge Bomb are moves that Gengar possesses, and they have shown real effectiveness against opponents.
28 Hawlucha
Battle Win Rate: 53% (9/17)
- Defining moment: Defeating Allain's Weavile in the Lumiose Conference
Before Hawlucha was a part of Ash's team, it was the champion of a forest, maintaining peace while enjoying a rivalry with the previous champion, a Machamp. Known for its tough and speedy moves,specifically its signature move Flying Press.
The Fighting/Flying-type became a valued member of Ash's team in the Kalos region and was used in many major gym and conference finals battles. Including in Ash's final battle against Allain where he defeated Weavile but lost in a close battle with his Bisharp. It was also pivotal during Ash and his friend's final showdown with Team Flare. It won more battles than it lost.
27 Staraptor
Battle Win Rate: 55% (11/20)
- Defining moment: Defeating Nando's Roserade in the Lilly of the Valley Conference
Staraptor was an important part of Ash's Sinnoh team. However, it was overshadowed by Infernape and Pikachu. But it more than held its own in battles, taking care of Paul's Weavile despite the type advantage and shining in the Lilly of the Valley Conference with an easy win against Nando's Roserade.
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The bird was somewhat overused, being mainly portrayed as a lookout Pokemon. When it did battle, it showed its power with Close Combat and Brave Bird, two strong moves that packed a punch in Sinnoh.
26 Sceptile
Battle Win Rate: 55% (16/30)
- Defining moment: Defeating Tobias' Legendary Pokemon, Darkrai, in the Lily of the Valley Conference.
Though Ash owns many strong Grass-types, none compare to his iconicSceptilewhen it comes to sheer strength. Starting as a Treeko and eventually evolving into a Grovyle, this green gecko always had a thirst for battle. As a Grovyle, it defeated Gym Leader Norman's Slacking with its hidden ability Overgrow. Ash's Grovyle eventually evolved into a Sceptile and battled the Frontier Brain Spencer's Shiftree and Claydol in a powerful showdown.
Sceptile had a tough time against Frontier Head Brandon'sLegendary Pokemon Regirock and eventually lost the battle. Sceptile also fought against May's Blaziken in a contest battle, where both Pokemon awakened their hidden abilities. The match ended in an epic draw as the timer ran out. In the Sinnoh League, Sceptile made its legendary return and went up against Tobias' Powerful Darkrai, which had previously defeated many of Ash's best Pokemon. Sceptile eventually won against Darkrai, however, solidifying its status as one of Ash's strongest Pokemon. It had access to moves like Quick Attack, Leaf Blade, Leaf Storm, and Solar Beam.
