Dragon Ball is at its best when it’s balancing character development with action. As the series progresses, fights begin eating up more time, but Akira Toriyama doesn’t let this affect the quality of his story. Rather, he begins weaving progression into the action. A majority of the Freeza fight is just character development for everyone participating, but it’s not always so easy to see given just how good the raw combat is.
With a character like Goku — someone whose very motivation in-universe revolved around fighting— he’s at his best as a character during the action. As a result, Goku ends up benefiting the most from the series’ inherent use of action, often making his fights the best ones in the series.
10 Vs Grandpa Gohan
The Red Ribbon Army arc is an important arc for Goku’s development, in general — constantly placing him in positions where he can grow from other characters — and his final fight against Grandpa Gohan during Baba’s tournament captures that idea perfectly. The fight isn’t Gohan just testing his grandson, it’s Gohan teaching him a lesson.
Even after training with Karin, even after defeating the Red Ribbon Army, and even after defeating two of Baba’s strongest fighters, Gohan reminds Goku that there will always be someone better. Not just that, he specifically targets Goku’s weaknesses, prompting Goku to train his tail in preparation for the next tournament arc.
9 Vs Cell
Goku’s fight against Cell is light on actual character development for the series’ main character, but it’s also worth keeping in mind that Goku wasn’t the main character at this point. Rather, Toriyama had already planned for Gohan to take over. As is, Goku’s fight against Cell is more of a swan song to Son Goku.
It’s a perfect encapsulation of his skills as a martial artist, and the tournament framing allows fans one last chance to watch Goku fight in a setting that he’s built for. Even though Cell is stronger, Goku genuinely pushes his opponent and puts up a hell of a fight, choreography-wise. It’s a love letter to Goku that would resonate more had he stayed dead.
8 Vs Krillin
Despite being Goku’s rival from as early as the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai arc, Krillin never fights Goku until the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai — something the story actually stops to comment on. This fight not only marks the definitive rivalry between this pair of best friends, it also asserts one of the series’ core themes: the value of the next generation.
As the two battle in one of the best-choreographed fights in the franchise, Goku and Krillin are able to prove Roshi’s point: the next generation is here to stay. Roshi isn’t necessary when his students outdo him at virtually every turn. It’s a surprisingly poignant fight when framed through Master Roshi.
7 Vs Tao Pai Pai (Round 1)
The assassin Tao Pai Pai’s introduction midway through the Red Ribbon Army arc is one of the most important moments in Dragon Ball. In order, Tao Pai Pai: kills General Blue, a character Goku could not beat; Bora, the first heroic supporting character to die on-screen; defeats Goku, a character who has never lost a life or death fight; and steals all but one Dragon Ball.
Goku and Tao Pai Pai’s first battle is incredibly intense, with the assassin pushing Goku back at every turn. Not only is the Kamehameha useless on him, Tao Pai Pai is the first villain to use his own Ki attack: the Dodonpa. This fight fundamentally changes Dragon Ball.
6 Vs Jackie Chun
Goku’s first formal martial arts master, Roshi ends up competing in the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai under the guise of “Jackie Chun” to keep his students from winning. Fearing that they would become arrogant, Jackie Chun exists as Roshi’s way of teaching Goku and Krillin that there will always be someone better.
Martial arts isn’t about winning and this is what this fight is about. Goku loses a battle for the first time, but it’s one he needed to lose. Toriyama also makes a point of highlighting how inexperienced Goku is, a clever detail that ends up tying into his ultimate defeat. Few fights are as layered and dense as this one.
5 Vs Freeza (Round 1)
An important distinction to make: this entry only covers the fight up until the Genki Dama hits Freeza. Goku turning Super Saiyan fundamentally changes the battle. It’s still good, but worse in comparison to the strategic, dramatic, and incredibly readable fight between Goku and Freeza. The anime version extends its welcome, but the manga fight is perfectly paced.
Toriyama’s banter is top-notch, crafting a rivalry between two characters who have just met; Goku is forced to use almost all of his techniques in clever ways just to stay alive; and the reveal that Freeza was fighting at half power while Goku was pushing Kaioken to its limits is one of Toriyama’s better mid-fight twists.
4 Vs Raditz
The fight against Raditz marks the first time that: Goku and Piccolo work together; Saiyans appear, and Goku dies. For how short the fight ultimately is in comparison to some of the later Z-era matches, Goku and Piccolo versus Raditz is a narratively dense fight that ends up having consequences that’ll affect Dragon Ball for the rest of its run, really.
This is a frantic battle where Goku genuinely has no chance of winning. He fights strategically, but Raditz is just a step ahead. It’s an overwhelming fight as Goku and Piccolo struggle to obtain any kind of advantage they can. It’s only when Gohan dives in that Goku gets his opportunity to lock his brother in place.
3 Vs Tenshinhan (22nd TB)
Fun fact: Akira Toriyama considers this one of his favorite fights in the series, and rightfully so. The 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai is classic Dragon Ball at its best. Ki is still special, Toriyama’s melee choreography is at its best and he’s just introduced flight for the first time, adding a new dimension to the action.
Goku’s final fight against Tenshinhan is an outstanding tournament match. Tenshinhan completes his redemption arc, the series’ core themes are on full display, and both characters bust out some killer techniques in their attempt to one-up each other. Tenshinhan blasting the arena with a Kikoho remains one of the most iconic tournament moments in the series.
2 Vs Majunior
Of course, as good as the final fight of the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai may be, it’s hard to deny the beauty that is the final fight of the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai: Son Goku versus Majunior, Piccolo Daimao reborn. As far as tournament stakes go, this one is the most interesting. Piccolo’s trying to take over the world, but Goku’s here to win a tournament.
This ends up leading to Goku fighting exclusively by tournament rules in a truly savage match. Goku and Piccolo wear each other down, chapter after chapter, as the tides keep turning to favor one over the other. Goku saving flight for the Hail Mary at the end of the match is the perfect way of netting Goku his first tournament win.
1 Vs Vegeta
The low-class warrior versus the Elite, the final fight of the Saiyan arc is loaded with narrative and thematic gold. Goku’s fight against Vegeta isn’t just the single greatest fight in Dragon Ball history, it’s an incredibly important battle for Goku. He’s proving to Vegeta that class means nothing. Goku is not held back by his heritage.
Nature versus nurture also rears its hand in this fight. There’s Goku, the trained martial artists, versus Vegeta, a soldier who’s never needed to train. Even in the face of Vegeta’s superiority, Goku fights back, draws blood, wins their beam struggle, and nearly kills Vegeta in the process. It’s a great personal victory for Son Goku.