The 2024 Pokémon World Championships took place in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, from August 16 to 18, 2024. The three-day event was a series of epic showdowns featuring the world’s best Trainers across the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet games, Pokémon GO, and Pokémon UNITE. It’s fitting—given that it is the Year of the Dragon—that many Dragon-type Pokémon appeared throughout the competition. Several top players, including eventual World Champions, brought their Dragon-type Pokémon to Hawaiʻi with them.

Here’s a rundown of some of the Dragon-type Pokémon we saw at the 2024 Pokémon World Championships.

Pokémon GO

While the 1,500 CP cap can be a difficult ceiling for many Dragon-type Pokémon to squeak under, we still saw plenty of Dragon types tearing it up in the 2024 Pokémon GO World Championships. In fact, half of the top 10 Trainers had Dragon-type Pokémon, and the first- and second-place finishers both utilized Dragon-type Pokémon. Winner Yip Kai Cheng, also known as Yekai0904, included the Dragon- and Flying-type Altaria in his World Championship lineup of six Pokémon. In the GO Battle League, Altaria is beloved for its incredible bulk, being capable of taking a great deal of damage and performing well in neutral matchups.

In the first of four games, second-place finisher Martijn Versteeg, also known as Inadequance, led with the Ghost- and Dragon-type Giratina, which is considered to be his signature Pokémon. Giratina is much less common in Great League, largely because it is extremely difficult to obtain a Giratina below 1,500 CP. Giratina’s effectiveness is in part due to its rarity, with many opponents failing to prepare a solid counter. In the fourth and final game, Yekai0904 led with Altaria against Inadequance’s Giratina. It was not the matchup Inadequance wanted, but it was an unforgettable moment for Dragon-type Pokémon in World Championship history.

Other Dragon-type Pokémon that appeared frequently among the top teams include Goodra, which was used by James Smyth (LurganRocket), Aiden Hedderly (OutofPoket), and David Bustos Nordgren (PvpDavid07).

Pokémon TCG

Dragon-type Pokémon dominated across the Pokémon TCG, with several Dragon-type decks appearing again and again. The Regidrago VSTAR deck leverages the power of several Dragon-type Pokémon—including Dragapult ex, Giratina VSTAR, and Kyurem—and this deck was utilized by four of the top eight Masters competitors, including semifinalist Raz Wolpe, quarterfinalist Isaiah Bradner, and quarterfinalist Michael Davidson. Senior Division Champion Evan Pavelski helped make Regidrago VSTAR a Champion by using this deck. This particular deck centers on Regidrago VSTAR’s Apex Dragon attack, which allows the player to choose an attack from a Dragon-type Pokémon in the discard pile and use it as its attack.

Other popular decks featuring Dragon-type Pokémon at the 2024 Pokémon World Championships include Raging Bolt ex with its incredibly powerful Bellowing Thunder attack; it lets you discard any amount of Basic Energy to do 70 damage for each card you discard! Second-place finisher Seinosuke Shiokawa utilized a Roaring Moon ex deck, and while Roaring Moon ex is represented as a Darkness-type Pokémon in the Pokémon TCG, elsewhere it is considered a Dragon- and Dark-type Pokémon. This deck relies on its powerful Calamity Storm attack, and it can even take one-hit Knock Outs with Frenzied Gouging.

Then there’s the Miraidon ex deck, which technically categorizes Miraidon ex as a Lightning-type Pokémon, though outside of the Pokémon TCG, it is considered an Electric- and Dragon-type Pokémon. Miraidon ex is well-known for its Tandem Unit Ability, quickly finding powerful Pokémon like Raikou V and Iron Hands ex to electrify the battlefield. This deck was used by Masters Division semifinalist Jesse Parker.

Pokémon VGC

The video game competition at the 2024 Pokémon World Championships saw plenty of Dragon-type Pokémon in play. Most notably, winner Luca Ceribelli boasted a Miraidon on his team. This Legendary Electric- and Dragon-type Pokémon was a popular choice due to its high speed and powerful offensive capabilities, allowing it to deal out massive amounts of damage. Masters Division semifinalist Seong Jae Jeong, Masters Division quarterfinalist Chenyue Zeng, Seniors Division runner-up Luke Kroll, Senior Division semifinalist Min Jun Oh, and Senior Division semifinalist Michael Vono also used Miraidon.

Another Dragon-type Pokémon that appeared on plenty of teams was Tatsugiri, which appeared frequently with the Water type Dondozo. While Tatsugiri’s role is mainly to support Dondozo, that doesn’t change the fact that it played a major role on many of the best teams in the entire world. And considering Tatsugiri is directing Dondozo with Commander, you could say Tatsugiri’s calling very important shots when it comes to these world-class battles. Tatsugiri was utilized by Masters Division quarterfinalist Chenyue Zeng.

Last but certainly not least, Raging Bolt was a raging menace, with players taking advantage of its Ability, which allows it to deal significant amounts of damage, and its substantial bulk. Junior Division Champion Kevin Han, Junior Division runner-up Tatsuomi Shimanuki, Senior Division Champion Ray Yamanaka, and Senior Division semifinalist Min Jun Oh featured Raging Bolt on their teams.

Pokémon UNITE

While Dragon-type Pokémon weren’t as prominent in Pokémon UNITE as they were in the other games, we still saw some Dragon types compete at the 2024 Pokémon World Championships. Garchomp appeared on several teams, making good use of its Livid Outrage to terrorize the opposition. Dragonite was another somewhat frequent flier, largely due to the substantial damage its Hyper Beam deals.

Can’t get enough Year of the Dragon-type Pokémon content? Check out our Dragon-type Pokémon infographic. Explore amazing Dragon-type Pokémon TCG cards. Read creepy and unusual Pokédex entries featuring Dragon-type Pokémon. Watch some of Ash’s Dragonite’s best hugs. Pay homage to memorable Dragon-type Trainers. And test your knowledge of Dragon-type Pokémon with a quiz.