Dragon Ball follows Goku and his journey to finding the seven Dragon Balls. These Balls can summon Shenron, a powerful dragon that can grant a person's greatest desire. Goku is in search of these, like many others, in order to fulfill his desire.
Goku has been known as undefeatable, and in most cases, it is true. Goku rarely ever loses but when he does, it is against a great enemy. Despite his training, there are certain beings that he just cannot defeat. Other times the losses are important in order to teach him a valuable lesson. Either way, Goku can be and has been defeated a few times.
9 When It Took Three People To Defeat Vegeta
Goku has trained a lot and is without a doubt one of the strongest and most capable characters ever. However, he has never actually beaten Vegeta. Their fights have either required outside assistance or have been interrupted.
At the beginning of the Saiyan Saga, Goku challenged Vegeta to prove to him that it is possible to surpass Vegeta with enough training. Once the fight began, he realized how much stronger Vegeta was and had to use special moves to keep up with Vegeta's strength. The only reason Vegeta was defeated is that Krillin, Gohan, and Yajirobe helped Goku win the fight.
8 When Tao Pai Pai Almost Killed Him
Goku fought Tao Pai Pai in a fit of rage. Although Goku was stronger than Tao's previous opponents, Goku was horribly outmatched in terms of strength. This imbalance was so great that it almost cost Goku his life when Tao attacked him with Dodon Ray.
Fortunately for Goku, Tao had managed to take only three out of the four Dragon Balls and left one in Goku's pocket. This Dragon Ball saved his life. If it hadn't been for that, Goku would have been beaten to a pulp and would have died while battling Tao Pai Pai.
7 His Battle With King Piccolo
Although from the beginning it was clear that Goku would be no match for Piccolo, Goku fought him nevertheless. Goku took him by surprise but Piccolo recovered quickly and increased his power to retaliate. Piccolo injured Goku with a few hits and overwhelmed him.
Piccolo got scared for a minute because he underestimated Goku's move but was relieved to see that he was wrong. Piccolo was then ready to kill Goku. More than the actual defeat, Goku thinking he was strong enough to fairly battle Piccolo was his true loss. This battle was a lesson of humility for Goku.
6 When he fought Janemba
Janemeba is one of the most formidable foes that Goku has faced. He attacked Goku with his mini clones which were still bigger than Goku. This battle forced Goku to use Super Saiyan 3 in order to stay on par with Janemba.
This caused Janemba to transform into a smaller but stronger version of himself. He overpowered Goku, and Goku was forced to call Vegeta for help. They managed to briefly escape in order to fuse but failed and were eventually saved by more outside help. Goku should be given props for attempting to battle Janemba, but ultimately he lost.
5 When He Had To Call Gohan For Help
From the beginning of the fight between Goku and Cell, Cell knew that he was stronger than Goku. Cell was holding back because he wanted to enjoy this fight with Goku. In other words, he easily could have defeated Goku a lot sooner but chose not to.
In the end, Goku had to call in Gohan to help him defeat Cell. Goku knew he would not be able to win against Cell but believed that Gohan could win with his abilities. Although in the end Cell lost, this battle was a loss for Goku because he had to call in his son for help rather than winning the battle by himself.
4 When He Had To Sacrifice Himself For His Son
Goku's encounter with Raditz brought up new information which left Goku a little shocked. Raditz, however, kidnapped Gohan and gave Goku an ultimatum: to save his son he would have to kill humans. Goku rejected this bet and went to bring Gohan back.
During the battle, Goku's position was such that he had to pair up with Piccolo in order to save Gohan. The battle was harrowing and in the end, Goku had to sacrifice his life so that Raditz could be killed. This ordeal could have been avoided if Goku had been smarter and stronger but alas to save his son he had to lose his life.
3 When Goku Was Outsmarted By Ginyu
In Goku's battle against Ginyu, the latter had initially launched a surprise attack. Both the fighters were evenly matched even though they were holding back on their full strength. Goku soon had the upper hand. He managed to severely injure Ginyu but Ginyu used body-switching and exchanged bodies with Goku.
This left Goku in Ginyu's injured and dying body. Despite him overcoming this, Goku lost when it came to tactics and strategy. At times intelligence is more important than physical strength. This loss in terms of smartness taught Goku how to better his logical skills.
2 His Battle With Tien
In his battle against Tien, Goku launches an offensive attack from the beginning. He grabs Tien's leg and tosses him in the air to punch him. After this, Tien shoots a Dodon Ray that injures Goku. Goku rises from the rubble to fight back Tien.
In the end, however, Tien beats Goku to a pulp. Even so, the reason why Tien wins is because of technicality and not because he won the actual battle. Despite this, it is considered a loss for Goku, even though it was based on luck and not ability.
1 His First Battle With Master Roshi
Goku was quite a powerful individual among his peers from the beginning. He, however, lacked a sense of humility. In order to teach him an important lesson, Master Roshi disguises himself as Jackie Chun and fights against Goku.
He wanted to teach Goku that no matter how powerful he gets, there will always be someone who has even more power than he does. This was the first battle Goku lost and it was an important one as it shaped Goku's future journey. It made him who he is and may have had a slightly negative impact as it made him a little power-hungry.
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