In Dragon Ball, losing a battle can have dire consequences. More often than not, Goku and his friends fight with the fate of the world at stake, facing enemies set on conquering and destroying worlds, or even ending all mortal life. Other times—usually during tournaments—the stakes aren’t as high, but the rewards still make winning worth it, such as prize money and even Dragon Balls.
That said, even in Dragon Ball, winning isn’t always everything. There’ve been times where fighters have actually chosen to give up a fight, either because losing actually suited them better, or because fighting further just wasn’t worth it.
10 Piccolo Forfeits His Match Against The Supreme Kai Because He Thought Fighting Would Be Disrespectful
Before fusing with Kami, Piccolo probably would have had no reservations fighting a deity close to him in strength. After he became one with Earth’s guardian, however, Piccolo inherited Kami’s knowledge and reverence for Kais and other heavenly beings. Hence when Piccolo first met the mysterious Shin, the encounter immediately gave him pause.
The two were slated to fight each other in the World Martial Arts Tournament, but after Shin read Piccolo’s mind, the Namekian realized Shin was a Kai and forfeit the match. At first, Piccolo believed Shin was the Grand Kai, but soon learned that Shin was actually the Supreme Kai.
9 Giran Quit His Tournament Match After Seeing Goku’s Full Strength
Giran liked to talk a big game and, to be fair, he did have the brawn to match. However, even the pterodactyl man’s impressive strength wasn’t up to Goku’s at the World Martial Arts Tournament. At first, Giran seemed to have Goku on the ropes when trapping him in his Merry-Go-Round Gum, but the young Saiyan’s tail grew back just in time, giving him the strength boost he needed to break free.
Goku then tested his increased might by breaking a part of the wall next to the ring; Giran, terrified, raised a white flag in surrender, giving Goku the victory.
8 Krillin Surrendered Because Piccolo Jr. Was Too Strong
Krillin has a long history of surprising those who underestimate him, and with Piccolo’s second incarnation, it was no different. Krillin immediately caught Piccolo off-guard in the World Martial Arts Tournament by firing two energy beams that followed Piccolo into the air.
An intense fight with flying, eye beams and Kamehamehas ensued, but Piccolo eventually gained the upper hand by sneaking behind Krillin and knocking him down from the sky. Despite landing hard against the floor of the ring, Krillin still got up, but forfeit anyway, too bruised and battered to continue.
7 Android 18 Lost Her Fight To Mister Satan So He’d Pay Her Double His Prize Money… In Exchange For His Reputation
Mister Satan has actually helped save Earth, but his reputation is mostly built on lies. Since taking credit for defeating Cell, Videl’s bombastic father has been erroneously viewed by Earth’s people as their greatest hero.
Earth’s real heroes eventually accepted Mr. Satan’s need for glory, and have even exploited it. At the 25th World Martial Arts Tournament, the far stronger Android 18, offered to throw the match if Mr. Satan promised to give her twenty million Zeni-- double his prize money. Mr. Satan readily agreed, and 18 flung herself out of the ring after being hit by the “Ultra Megaton Punch.”
6 Goku Stepped Out Of The Ring Because He Knew Hit Was Holding Back (And Because He Wanted To See Monaka Fight)
Hit’s Time-Skip ability allowed him to both evade and surprise Goku fairly easily at Beerus and Champa’s tournament. However, Goku’s strategic use of power-ups like the Super Kaio-ken (in the anime) and his Super Saiyan God forms (Blue in the anime, both forms in the manga) eventually gave him the upper hand.
Yet Goku knew that Hit, being an assassin, was still holding back, as the tournament forbade killing. Goku thus deliberately exited the ring, promising Hit they’d fight again, unencumbered by rules. Goku also quit to see Monaka combat Hit, as Beerus had boasted greatly of Monaka’s strength.
5 Hit Lost The Tournament Of Destroyers To Settle His Debt With Goku
Goku wasn’t the only fighter who lost on purpose in Dragon Ball Super’s Tournament of Destroyers. After Goku willingly forfeit their match, Hit’s final match was against Monaka, an intergalactic deliveryman Beerus had tricked Goku into thinking was extremely powerful. Realizing that Monaka’s strength had been severely overstated, Hit deliberately let him win by pretending that Monaka’s punch was powerful enough to knock him out of the ring.
Hit chose to lose so that Universe 7 would win the tournament, viewing the act as a way to repay Goku for letting him win earlier.
4 Goku Gave Up During The Cell Games So Gohan Could Defeat Cell (And Because He Would Have Lost Anyway)
Goku was certain he’d lose to Cell long before the two fought in the Cell Games. Nevertheless, he put up an incredible fight, even blowing Cell’s upper body to pieces before the Bio-Android regenerated himself.
However, before a victor could be decided, Goku willingly forfeits, saying Gohan would fight Cell next. Goku knew that his son had surpassed him in strength as a Super Saiyan and was on the verge of unlocking the Super Saiyan 2 form. On top of that, Goku was running low on power, especially after Cell had deflected his barrage of energy blasts with a force field.
3 Master Roshi (as Jackie Chun) Forfeit The 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament So Tien Could Fight Goku
There’s no doubt that Tien Shinhan was stronger than Jackie Chun, but his match against the disguised Master Roshi was far from a picnic for the three-eyed fighter. While Roshi managed to keep up with Tien through a mixture of skill and guile, he ultimately chose to quit the fight, realizing Tien would be a worthier opponent for Goku to fight in the finals.
Roshi then decided he would no longer fight in future World Martial Arts Tournaments, believing he no longer needed to worry about defeating his students so that victory wouldn’t go to their heads.
2 Future Trunks Gave Up Because He Couldn’t Keep Up With Perfect Cell’s Speed
In the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, both Vegeta and Future Trunks mastered “Super Saiyan Second Grade”: a new version of the original Super Saiyan form that gave them tremendous gains in power, strength and muscle mass. They also discovered the Super Saiyan Third Grade state… but Trunks, mistakenly believing Vegeta hadn't unlocked it, kept it a secret.
Once alone with Perfect Cell, however, Trunks cut loose, expanding his muscles and power to the fullest… which, to his dismay, actually slowed him down. Unable to keep up, Trunks told Cell to finish him off. Luckily, the Bio-Android spared Trunks, intrigued by the half-Saiyan’s mysterious power boost.
1 Vegeta Lost The Will To Fight When He Couldn’t Defeat Frieza… And Tried Running Away Twice (In The Anime)
Not fully familiar with the transformation’s intricacies, Vegeta repeatedly mistook himself for a Super Saiyan on Namek. Yet Frieza proved the Saiyan prince wrong twice.
When Vegeta first told Frieza he’d become a Super Saiyan, the tyrant easily overpowered him by transforming into his second form. Vegeta made the same claim later while Frieza was in his fourth stage, but again, Vegeta’s strength proved lacking. The first occasion left Vegeta frozen with fear in the manga, while the second stole his will to fight. The anime, however, went further, having Vegeta try fleeing on both occasions. Frieza easily caught up, however, eventually killing Vegeta.
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