MostPokémonfans tend to agree that Ash’s strongest Pokémon is Pikachu, and for good reason. As Ash’s closest teammate, Pikachu is the one Pokémon Ash will always rely on in a battle, and thanks to that, he’s almost always the one to get Ash a big win against a powerful opponent, or at least get him as close to that as possible.
It’s easy to say thatPikachu is Ash’s strongest Pokémon, but that might not be as conclusive as people think. As strong as Pikachu is, he’s hardly invincible, even in the later seasons, and when looking at all the battles Pikachu fought in the anime,Pikachu’s official win record inPokémonpaints a very unique picture of just how strong he was. There are a lot of specifics that go into it all, of course, but at the end of the day, it’s no less fun to think about.
The following statistics are based on official trainer battles Pikachu and other Pokémon were involved with, not battles against wild Pokémon or villainous groups like Team Rocket.
Just How Strong A Pokémon Was Ash’s Pikachu? Here’s The Answer
Pikachu’s Win-Loss Record In The Anime Explained
Throughout the anime,Ash’s Pikachufought in roughly 199 battles, and from there, he had a record of 132 wins, 59 losses, and eight draws. That means thatAsh’s Pikachu won about 68% of its battles across the entirety of thePokémonanime, which gives Pikachu one of the best records of Ash’s Pokémon, even if it isn’t the best on a technical level.
As for which of Ash’s Pokémon have better records than Pikachu, that list might be surprising to some. Pokémon like Charizard and Infernape had higher win rates than Pikachu in certain seasons, which makes sense, considering their prominence, but less prominent Pokémon like Snorlax, Bayleef, Ambipom, and Krookodile also had higher win rates, and Primeape even had a perfect win rate in its brief time with Ash.It wasn’t untilPokémon the Series: XYthat Pikachu was consistently the best performer on Ash’s team, which says a lot about how goodAsh’s other Pokémonwere.
That being said, not only does Pikachu battle far more than most of Ash’s other Pokémon, whether it’s in a specific region or in general, but he also typically battles the strongest Pokémon used by the strongest trainers, so whether Pikachu wins or loses, it should count for more than when another Pokémon battles a considerably weaker opponent. As such, even if some Pokémon have higher win rates than Pikachu,the frequency with which Pikachu battles, combined with the strength of his opponents, gives him the most impressive record of all of Ash’s Pokémon, and overall, that’s hard to deny.
Pikachu Would Always Be Ash’s Best Pokémon, Regardless Of Statistics
What Made Pikachu Such A Special Part Of Pokémon
Pikachu’s statistics paint a great picture of how powerful a Pokémon it was, but at the end of the day, that was hardly necessary. As strong as the Pokémon Ash catches in specific seasons may be, Pikachu is the one who’s always by his side, meaning he’s the one with more consistent growth than any other Pokémon Ash has ever owned.Pikachu, by way of the narrative, would always be one of Ash’s best Pokémon, if not the best, and that would be easy enough to piece together just from watching the anime.
More than that is how irrelevant it is to Pikachu’s character. What makes Pikachu such a great character is how well he can play off of Ash and match him in determination, no matter how much the odds are stacked against them, so with that in mind,Pikachu’s specific record was always a moot point when it has little to do with him being a great character in thePokemonanime. Pikachu left behind an incredible legacy in thePokémonanime, and as much as his incredible win rate contributed to that, it was hardly the sole factor behind it.
