Dragon Ball 5 Characters Who Win More Than They Lose (& 5 Who Lose More Than They Win)

Dragon Ball has a massive roster of fighters, and while some of them have impressive win records, some end up taking more L's than W's.

In a series with as many fights as Dragon Ball, some characters are going to lose more often than others. That’s just the nature of, well, literally anything. Competition, media, you name it. It’ll never be fair, it’ll never be balanced, and it’ll always be irritating for some. In the case of Dragon Ball, fans simply become attached to certain characters who, despite showing promise, ultimately amount to little combat wise.

But that doesn’t mean they amount to nothing. Losing in Dragon Ball is an opportunity to grow, and all the best character arcs use loss as a means of pushing the characters along. Of course, this can result in certain characters winning more than others. A lot more. And while they might undercut tension, it also comes with being an active character in the narrative.

10 Win More: Master Roshi

These days, there won’t be many Dragon Ball fans clamoring to sing Roshi’s praises. This is a fanbase that went rabid because he dodged a few of Jiren’s punches in the manga. But it’s fitting. Roshi is a martial arts master who has been alive for centuries. He quite literally taught Goku the essentials not only of martial arts, but of life.

Without Roshi, Dragon Ball wouldn’t have its core themes. He’s a genuine master who rarely ever loses on-screen. His biggest loss in the manga comes when fighting Tenshinhan in the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai. He loses not because of anything Tenshinhan does, but by gracefully forfeiting to give Ten something to think about. (Worth noting, he doesn’t actually fight King Piccolo.)

9 Lose More: Chaozu

Chaozu has quite literally never won a fight. It’d be funny if Dragon Ball actually made any effort in acknowledging his character outside the context of Tenshinhan. Still, he’s a decent prop in that regard. Outside of Tenshinhan’s shadow, Chaozu just lives to suffer. He loses his first fight against Krillin, dies without fighting King Piccolo, loses to Tao Pai Pai in the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai, then kills himself fighting Nappa.

After that, Chaozu doesn’t fight a single thing in the manga. He doesn’t even show up for the Cell Games. The anime has him fight Gurd and it seems the Dragon Ball Super manga will give him something to do in the Moro arc, but don’t hold your breath for any Chaozu wins.

8 Win More: Yajirobe

Surprising, right? Yajirobe hasn’t fought very often– or in quite a long time for that matter– but he has one of the best track records in the series. His introduction sees him fighting Goku to a stalemate, with Goku even acknowledging Yajirobe as the strongest person he’s ever met. Yajirobe then kills one of Piccolo’s kin with next to no effort Tambourine bodied Goku.

Yajirobe does lose to God in the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai, but come on, it’s God. The last time he sees any major combat is in the Saiyan arc where he: cuts off Vegeta’s tail and slices his back at a decisive moment. It’s not exactly a win, but he does share the overall victory against Vegeta with Goku, Krillin, and Gohan.

7 Lose More: Yamcha

Akira Toriyama never treated Yamcha like a joke until later in the series (and even then Yamcha is written affectionately and respectfully,) but early Dragon Ball doesn’t exactly do Yamcha many favors. His introduction against Goku is really the best showing he’ll have across the entire series. From here, misery is Yamcha’s mistress.

Still, for someone who loses most of his fights, said fights tend to be some of the series’ best: Yamcha vs Jackie Chun, Yamcha vs Tenshinhan, and Yamcha versus God are all incredible displays of Yamcha’s talents in spite of his ultimate loss across all three. It’s a shame he has no real fights after dying.

6 Win More: Future Trunks

Even though he earns a few losses thanks to Dragon Ball Super, there’s no denying Future Trunks’ excellent track record. In the original series, he’s basically the “get it done” main character. He’s only in the Cell arc, but he gets stuff done. Mecha Freeza and King Cold show up? Dead asap. Androids reeking havoc in the present? Better go back to lend a hand.

Androids 17 and 18 in the future? Trunks trains in the past to defeat them. Cell waking up later? Trunks sets up a trap and then immediately kills Cell the first chance he gets. Even in Super where he’s the weakest major character in the Goku Black arc, he manages to defeat Merged Zamasu as much as possible before Zeno has to be brought in.

5 Lose More: Piccolo

Poor Piccolo’s track record should really a result of his character development more than anything, but the Freeza and Cell arcs don’t do him too many favors in that regard– essentially capping off Piccolo’s big moments of development with losses that don’t really push him to question his identity. Still, they’re good fights!

Dragon Ball Super has been doing particularly bad by Piccolo. He already had a weak track record in the original series, but Super goes so far as to having Piccolo give up his fight with Frost so that Vegeta can take over because Piccolo apparently has no chance.

4 Win More: Vegeta

Vegeta is a character who fans love to say always loses, but he has one of the best track records in the series. Vegeta always loses to the arc villains, but he cleans up the supporting baddies rather consistently. Dragon Ball Super loves this role for Vegeta and has basically kept him on clean up duty since the Universe 6 Tournament.

It is worth noting that Vegeta’s track record is really bolstered by his strong first half on Namek. He essentially obliterates most of Freeza’s trouble with few losses. The Cell arc isn’t as kind to him, but his track record since Super started has been glowing: anime Vegeta has even killed every member of the Ginyu Force.

3 Lose More: Tenshinhan

Despite an incredibly strong introduction (one that results in him winning every single fight he participates in during the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai,) Tenshinhan isn’t able to keep up with the rest of the series. He doesn’t win a single fight in the Demon King Piccolo arc, but manages to defeat Tao Pai Pai in the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai before losing to Goku in his rematch.

From there, Tenshinhan only wins one more fight against a Saibaiman before Dragon Ball starts tossing him perpetual losses. He loses his life using a Kikoho against Nappa, the Androids beat him into the dirt, and his only interactions with Cell and Boo result in him getting manhandled.

2 Win More: Son Goku (Original Series)

Goku wins a lot in the first six story arcs. He has his fair share of losses and they’re all very meaningful, but early Dragon Ball likes to keep Goku winning. It’s only after Raditz arrives that the series shifts to allowing Goku to lose a bit more frequently. Even then, though, he wins all his major fights on Namek, offsetting him losing every fight in the Cell arc.

For that matter, Goku really only wins one fight in the Boo arc: against Yakon. It’s debatable whether he “won” his fight against Vegeta or Uub since they were both interrupted, but it’s not like Goku’s track record matters narratively by that point. Goku “losing” is less about his loss and more about moving the plot along creatively during the Cell and Boo arcs.

1 Lose More: Son Goku (Dragon Ball Super)

Which is an idea Dragon Ball Super has run with for the worse. Goku just isn’t allowed to win anymore it seems. It all began with Battle of Gods which, to its credit, justified Goku losing masterfully. Resurrection F, however, did not. Goku forfeiting the Universe 6 Tournament is interesting, but he doesn’t do much that arc otherwise.

The Goku Black arc is really just a back and forth between everyone, and Goku’s few wins in the anime’s Tournament of Power are offset by his no wins in the manga. Ultra Instinct doesn’t even beat Jiren. Here’s hoping the Moro arc will allow Goku to have a meaty win again.