The students of My Hero Academia have come a long way since the anime's first season, particularly when it comes to mastering their Quirks. Everyone from Class 1-A has learned to leverage their specific power, and Tenya Iida has taken his Engine to the next level, learning to use Recipro Burst for much longer and mastering his control over it.
In fact, when pitted against a number of Pokémon, Iida would likely come out on top – an impressive feat, considering so many fully evolved Pokémon have been trained specifically for battle. Of course, as with any Pokémon battle, there are a few types that Iida would prove weak against. Here are five Pokémon Iida could defeat (& five he would likely lose to).
10 Can Defeat: Blastoise
Blastoise is by no means a weak Pokémon, but it wouldn't stand a chance against someone with Iida's speed. The water Pokémon relies mostly on strength – and heavy water blasts – to defeat its opponents, and those are things Iida can easily dodge using his Quirk.
If Blastoise did manage to hit Iida with a move like Hydro Cannon, it's also unlikely to impact the U.A. High student for very long. Unlike Denki Kaminari, Iida's hero moves don't depend on electricity; consequently, water isn't something he needs to worry about being hit by.
9 Would Lose To: Mewtwo
No amount of speed would enable Iida to outrun Mewtwo, a Pokémon that can leverage telekinesis to its advantage. In fact, fans have already witnessed Ash, Pikachu, and their friends attempt to run from Mewtwo, as well as try to rush the legendary psychic type. Neither strategy worked for them, and it's unlikely Iida's Recipro Burst would allow him to accomplish those feats either.
Given that Iida's attacks depend mostly on physical ability and speed, he wouldn't have anything to counter Mewtwo's psychic-type moves with. That would, ultimately, be his downfall.
8 Can Defeat: Venusaur
Like Blastoise, Venusaur depends more on strength than speed when it comes to battle, and that makes it another opponent Iida should have no trouble defeating. While it's true that Venusaur's moves – like Solar Beam, Sludge Bomb, or even Razor Leaf – would hurt Iida more than Blastoise's water attacks would, these are all attacks that the hero could outrun, giving him the upper hand in a fight.
In fact, the only chance Venusaur would have of landing a hit on Iida would be to use his vines to tie the U.A. High student down. Unfortunately, the former would have to catch the latter first, which just doesn't seem likely.
7 Would Lose To: Mew
Similar to Mewtwo, Mew has psychic abilities that would far surpass anything Iida could bring to the table. That said, it would be comical to watch the lighthearted Pokémon troll Midoriya's overly serious classmate.
Not only would Mew's psychic attacks make it difficult for Iida to land a hit on the legendary Pokémon, but the speed with which the former appears and disappears would also detract from the hero's one advantage. Mew's got power and speed on its side, and that's exactly why it would win this battle.
6 Can Defeat: Metagross
A match between Iida and Metagross could be a close call, if only because the Pokémon does have some pretty powerful abilities. Unfortunately, like Venusaur, Metagross's best moves would need to actually hit Iida to render the boy defenseless, and his speed would make that a difficult thing to accomplish.
Metagross may be a strong Pokémon, but its lack of agility puts it at a disadvantage, especially against someone known for their speed.
5 Would Lose To: Infernape
Infernape has a lot going for it in battle, and all of its strengths would work well in a fight against Iida. For one, Infernape is known for its speed, meaning it can rival Iida in that area; furthermore, its type combination also gives it an advantage over the hero-in-training.
Boasting both Fire and Fighting-type moves, Infernape would make quick work of a hero with Iida's abilities. Not only would it be able to keep up with Iida speed-wise, but Infernape would be able to match his combat skills with its fighting-type attacks. Infernape's fire blasts would really put it over the edge because Iida is not immune to flames!
4 Can Defeat: Hitmonchan
Hitmonchan is a Fighting-type Pokémon that uses punches and kicks to defeat its opponents. Unfortunately, U.A. High trains all of its students in close combat, which means Iida might not even need his Quirk to go toe to toe with this Pokémon.
Of course, being able to fight and dodge does give Iida the upper hand here. It's hard to see how he'd lose to Hitmonchan. In fact, it's probably safe to say Iida would wear the poor Pokémon out in a one-on-one fight.
3 Would Lose To: Lucario
When it comes to speed, Lucario isn't half bad, which already should enable it to keep up with Iida. Of course, that isn't a guarantee, but the fighting/steel Pokémon has another power on its side: It can read its opponent's aura and determine their next move.
If Lucario can tell what Iida's going to do before he follows through with it, it's unlikely Midoriya's friend would stand a chance against this Pokémon. After all, speed doesn't matter if an enemy knows where you are going to be two moves from now.
2 Can Defeat: Tyranitar
Tyranitar is another normally powerful Pokémon that would probably lose to Iida based on speed alone. There's no way the dark/rock Pokémon could keep up with Iida's Quirk, and it'd be difficult for Tyranitar to use any of its best attacks for that reason.
The majority of Tyranitar's moves can be dodged in a fight, and fans know that Iida's Quirk gives him the ability to move aside and away from anything heading in his direction.
1 Would Lose To: Charizard
Iida's speed works to his advantage while he's on the ground, but adding a Pokémon that can fly to the equation makes things more complicated. Even if Charizard can't match Iida's agility, it can swoop in from above, making surprise attacks a possibility.
Add in Charizard's Fire-type moves and Iida's basically toast. If Charizard used Flamethrower while flying through the air, the U.A. student would have much more to worry about than losing a battle.