Our world-famous hero Goku has gone through a number of trials and fought powerful opponents in the Dragon Ball franchise, but only a handful of his opponents can so far boast perfect records against the Saiyan hero . ⭐
Because yes! There have indeed been characters in the anime with whom Goku lost. In many of these cases, Goku was able to defeat these characters in rematches, but things didn't always work out that way. When Goku wasn't allowed to get his way a second time against an opponent, it was up to another member of the Z-Fighters to save the day in another way. 💨
Without further ado, below we will now see who has ever been stronger than Goku at some point in the history of the Dragon Ball saga! So if you're dying to know, don't wait any longer to devour our article! 📖
GOKU, A POWERFUL WARRIOR
Before painting a relatively unadvantageous portrait of Goku, it is important to lay the foundations. Indeed, over the years, Goku has still thwarted the evil plans of several threats! With the help of his friends and fellow fighters Krillin, Gohan and Yajirobe, Goku stopped Nappa and Vegeta from achieving their goals on Earth at the start of the Z Saga. Some time later, Goku became a Super Saiyan for the first time and defeated the most powerful villain in the galaxy (at the time) Frieza. ❄
Then, after his death at the end of the Cell Saga, Goku used his Spirit Bomb technique to finish off Kid Boo and helped save the planet multiple times in Dragon Ball Super against villains such as Golden Frieza and Zamasu. Despite all these feats, there were also times when Goku couldn't be counted as the hero of the story, because after all, Goku isn't the only hero capable of fighting in the Dragon Ball franchise.
When necessary, characters like Vegeta, Gohan, and Piccolo took the opportunity to stand out by attempting to defeat the villain in situations where Goku had been removed from the equation. This was proven to us in Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super . It's important to keep in mind that the following article doesn't take into account enemies Goku has never faced, but instead focuses on villains who fought against him but didn't beat him. This is what we will see below! 😨
GOKU VS RADITZ: RADITZ WINS
At the start of DBZ, Goku finally learned the truth about his Saiyan heritage when it was explained to him by his evil brother, Raditz . The Frieza Force member and Saiyan warrior proved to be stronger than Goku himself, who, despite all the combat experience he had gained during his childhood alongside Kamé Sennin in Dragon Ball, n couldn't win. 🥊
This resulted in a unique scene, where we could observe Raditz standing, facing Goku, with his foot resting on the hero's chest. Later, Goku teamed up with Piccolo to fight his brother, but still couldn't beat him. Seeing that a second defeat was imminent, Goku and Piccolo devised a last-ditch strategy to get rid of him for good. After Goku catches Raditz, Piccolo will kill them both with his signature technique. 😣
Many might point to Raditz's introduction as the point where Goku's arc changes. However, while Raditz's arrival serves as a big turning point for Dragon Ball's story - being where the anime split into Dragon Ball Z - Goku's character does not change drastically until that he sacrifices himself to ensure that Raditz is killed by Piccolo's Special Beam Cannon.
Dying transforms Goku's entire outlook on life. It introduces Goku to a much larger world, giving him a much broader perspective on the universe. This also pushes Goku to almost cosmic levels of power thanks to his training under King Kai. It was thanks to King Kai that Goku's focus shifted from martial arts prowess to intense power-ups and beam wrestling. This is where Goku learns the Kaio-Ken and Spirit Bomb techniques. Goku had already become the most powerful fighter on the planet. King Kai showed him new plateaus he could reach.
GOKU VS VEGETA: VEGETA WINS
Vegeta is considered Goku's greatest rival. Above all, he is one of the main characters of the saga who is always at least a notch behind him in terms of power, and this has always been the case over time. While this is certainly true of the Saiyan Prince , it is worth noting that Goku has never beaten him in the literal sense, going so far as to KO his best enemy. 🥊
In the Saiyan saga , Goku was also on the verge of defeating him, but Vegeta prevented this fate from happening by becoming an impressive giant ape (transformation into Oozaru) because he did not have his tail cut off, at the same time. difference from Son Goku . Goku was therefore defeated by Vegeta Golden Oozaru, forcing the remaining Z-Warriors to finish the fight for him. Goku, seriously damaged, was therefore only a spectator of the rest of the fight while Yajirobe managed to finally cut off the tail of the transformed prince. Gohan and Krillin then followed into battle and took on a severely weakened Vegeta in battle. 🔪
The conflict then ended, unexpectedly allowing Vegeta to escape. In the Frieza and Cell Sagas, Vegeta later served as an ally to all of Goku's Cove but became evil again in the Boo Saga when the magician Babidi increased his power and then marked him with his seal, detecting the evil of vengeance and jealousy towards Goku that lay dormant within him. As Majin Vegeta , Vegeta then managed to defeat Goku, completely unaware that Goku had retained his true power. Goku would probably have beaten him thanks to his Super Saiyan 3 form, but he chose to save this transformation for later, so the suspense was at its height! 😊
GOKU VS GINYU: GINYU WON
The Ginyu Commando is an elite team of mercenaries who serve King Frieza in the Dragonball Z and Dragonball Z Kai series . It consists of five powerful warriors: Recoome, Butta, Jeese, Guildo and Captain Ginyu, the leader. They are the secondary antagonists of the Namek Saga, while Frieza's army is the main group of antagonists. These are also Frieza 's other men that the Z-Fighters face before dealing with the famous king. 💥
Recoome, Butta and Jeese of the Ginyu Commando were no match for Goku on Planet Namek, but their leader's level was another story. Captain Ginyu challenged Goku , but it became apparent early on that Goku had the advantage and would have won if the fight continued at the same pace. Ginyu, having recognized this, changed the course of the battle by intentionally injuring himself and using his special power to swap bodies with Goku. In Ginyu's body, victory became out of reach for Goku. Ginyu was then finally stopped by Vegeta, who tricked him into entering the body of a frog. 🐸
It will nevertheless be necessary to remember that when Goku faced Captain Ginyu of the Frieza force, he had not yet learned the technique to become a Super Saiyan. But even at this point, Goku had Ginyu in his sights and the fight was close. The two adversaries were fighting each other in battle and it even seemed for a while that the future Saiyan warrior would win the battle, to our great astonishment the turnaround in the situation was clear and precise.
GOKU VS C-19: C-19 WINS
Goku was less important than usual in the saga's story when Doctor Gero's androids entered the scene in Dragon Ball Z. After receiving a warning from Future Trunks that the earth was "going to be" destroyed by androids in the near future, the Z-Warriors trained extensively, knowing that two android enemies were coming. When the day they feared finally came, Androids C-19 and C-20 defeated Yamcha and then moved on to fight Goku. In a one-on-one confrontation against Android 19 , Goku's Super Saiyan form appeared to be physically superior, but due to the virus he had contracted, a sort of heart disease, he found himself weakening in the the heat of the moment. 💉
The fight continued as best it could, but C-19's ability to absorb his energy had exhausted him even more. Before Goku could be killed, Vegeta arrived and revealed that he too had learned how to transform into a Super Saiyan. With his new power, he managed to kill the two androids. Since it took time for Son Goku to recover and train, he remained on the sidelines until the end of the conflict with the androids, so he didn't have a big role to play for once in a saga of the story of Akira Toriyama. For this reason, it was Vegeta and Piccolo who took care of Androids 17 and 18. Goku was unable to fight either of them until Dragon Ball Super. 💨
GOKU VS CELL: CELL WINS
Given that Piccolo, Vegeta, Tien, and Future Trunks had already fought Cell with everything they had, the most anticipated battle of the Cell Games was naturally Goku vs. Cell, but it didn't go at all like the Z -Warriors were waiting. . In the middle of Goku's fight with the villain, he abruptly ended the fight and admitted to everyone present that he couldn't win. It was at this point that Gohan was chosen to fight in his place, as Goku understood that only Gohan had the physical abilities to become Super Saiyan 2 and beat him for good. Years after Cell's death, Goku finally surpassed him but never fought him again. He almost had a chance to avenge his loss in Otherworld, but Pikkon defeated Cell before Goku could join the fray.
GOKU VS MAJIN BOO: MAJIN BOO WINS
Goku defeated Kid Boo at the end of Dragon Ball Z, but was unable to overcome the first version of the villain. Against Majin Boo, Goku achieved Super Saiyan 3 form and gave Majin Boo his toughest fight yet, but as powerful as he had become, he knew he didn't have enough time left on Earth . 🌍
Goku was dead during this story and only had a brief period of time to return to Earth. Additionally, Majin Boo's regenerative properties prevented him from sustaining serious injuries. Seeing that he couldn't win, Goku chose to ensure that Goten and Trunks would be able to succeed where he and Vegeta had unfortunately failed. 😫
GOKU VS FROST: FROST WON
During the Universe 6 saga of Dragon Ball Super, Beerus' team of Universe 7 warriors (Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo and Monaka) had to face Botamo, Auta Magetta , Frost, Cabba and Hit. Goku was chosen to fight first, his opponent being Botamo. After defeating Botamo, Goku had to fight Frost , Frieza 's Universe 6 counterpart. Originally seen as a selfless hero, Frost proved to be just as deceptive and devious as Frieza himself. Hidden on his body was an illegal and toxic weapon that he would use to knock Goku out of the ring. Goku never even got the chance to use his full power. As a result, the Saiyan lost the fight when he clearly shouldn't have. After being forced to use the same tactic against Piccolo, Frost was disqualified, but was still allowed to fight Vegeta, who defeated him easily. 🥋
Frost returned as a fighter for Team Universe 6 in the Tournament of Power, and although he fought some members of Team Universe 7, he no longer encountered Goku himself- even. As Goku was busy elsewhere in the ring and Frost had likely avoided him on purpose, Frost focused his efforts on taking down weaker opponents like Krillin and fought heroes such as Master Roshi and Gohan. Due to another problem, he was eliminated from the tournament by Frieza . 😏
GOKU VS KALE: KALE COULD HAVE WON
Kale may be one of those only Saiyans capable of accomplishing the Legendary Super Saiyan form, but she shouldn't be anywhere near Goku's level. So we have before us, during the super saga, a Saiyan who trained his whole life in combat and yet, he was beaten and humiliated fighting a young Saiyan girl, who did not even know his powers before the Tournament power. The way she mistreated Goku's Super Saiyan Blue form just didn't bode well for our favorite hero! 😥
It took our hero the strength to deploy Ultra Instinct to defeat this formidable opponent.
GOKU VS BEERUS: BEERUS WINS
Dragon Ball Super brought to life and introduced us to a charismatic new character, the God of Destruction . In this new anime series, Beerus attempted to search for a being called Super Saiyan God and thus it brought him to Earth.
Eventually, after learning of Shenron's being, Goku transformed into SSJ God and fought Beerus. Goku felt stronger than ever and yet he was largely defeated. Beerus didn't even need to use half his power for this and it was quite humiliating for Goku. 😂
Besides, if you are a fan of Dragon Ball Super, you can find the Goku Ultra Instinct Figure exclusively at Goku Shop! 🌟
GOKU VS GOLDEN FREEZER : GOLDEN FREEZER WINS
Frieza's resurrection seemed like a storyline with no meaning or connections to the other sagas until Goku and the Evil Emperor decided to show fans some of the new tricks they had learned to master. Goku then showed his Super Saiyan Blue form, while Frieza transformed into a brand new golden form, named Golden Frieza. Nonetheless, Goku still dominated until he let his ignorance and arrogance get the better of him. Frieza , known for being the smart strategist he always was, takes advantage of this and achieves an undeserved victory as a result. 🏆
GOKU VS GOKU BLACK: GOKU BLACK WINS
In DBS, Goku Black was a very underrated villain. He was a deity in the skin of a Saiyan, meaning his power grew with each battle. When Trunks, Goku, and Vegeta went to the future to fight him, he beat them with absolute ease. It was such a convincing victory that Goku, Vegeta, and Future Trunks had to come back to regroup for an opportunity to fight him. Goku Black looked unbeatable before merging with Zamasu . 💥
GOKU VS CELL JR. : CELL JR. WON
The most embarrassing defeat Goku ever suffered came at the hands of Perfect Cell and his minions. These little blue creatures only looked small and semi-harmless but they had incredible power. They were so strong that neither Goku nor Vegeta could even properly lay their hands on them. 🦅
Goku was beaten senseless and for the first time in a long time, it didn't look like he could pull off a miracle. It is therefore with dismay that we agree to say that this little ugly and blue creature got the better of a Saiyan, it is truly shameful and humiliating for Son Goku, our beloved hero! 😥
GOKU VS JIREN: JIREN WON
In a fight that will long be remembered , Jiren and Goku showed why they were two of the strongest mortals in the Dragon Ball multiverse. The long-awaited contest between the two did not disappoint fans of the saga as they pushed each other to their limits and to their deepest limits. Goku mastered his Ultra Instinct form, while Jiren, for the first time in his life, had to exponentially display his strength against a tough opponent. 🧘🏻♂️
Goku then became so powerful that towards the end, he had completely defeated Jiren. But his body couldn't hold on for the last second as he gave up and in an instant, Goku had lost all of his previously stored energy. Even Jiren had to admit that he didn't want the fight to end like this. It will therefore be a matter of revenge for the two mortals! 👊🏻
