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40 Years Later, Vegeta Still Can’t Defeat Goku in Another Aspect of Dragon Ball
Vegeta loses to Goku in yet another aspect of Dragon Ball, released to celebrate the franchise’s 40th anniversary. The Dragon Ball franchise has established itself as one of the most outstanding in the global entertainment industry, with much of the credit going to its iconic characters and intense battles. As a series rooted in the shōnen genre, Dragon Ball naturally incorporates many of the genre’s strongest elements. While action and adventure form the core of the franchise, one of its finest strengths is the rivalry between its two central figures, Goku and Vegeta.
It is no overstatement to say that Goku and Vegeta’s rivalry is among the greatest in the entire entertainment medium, not just anime. The Dragon Ball franchise itself understands the importance of this dynamic and has repeatedly revisited its clashes in one form or another. However, when all is said and done, Goku has consistently emerged on top. Beyond proving himself stronger on multiple occasions, Goku has also surpassed the Saiyan Prince in other aspects, most notably by being the first to attain new transformations. Now, Goku has also outdone Vegeta in terms of popularity, with the Saiyan Prince once again trailing closely behind Kakarot.
Goku Defeats Vegeta in Dragon Ball’s Popularity Contest
In commemoration of the franchise entering its 40th year, Dragon Ball launched several projects, one of the most notable being the worldwide popularity contest titled Dragon Ball The One. The popularity contest began in November 2025 and featured a total of 212 characters. The final results, revealing the top 20 most popular characters, were announced at a recent Dragon Ball event, confirming Goku as the franchise’s most popular character, with Vegeta securing second place. While Goku claiming the top spot comes as no surprise, Vegeta once again finishing behind him highlights how this pattern has become a staple of the franchise.
It seems that no matter how much fans hope to see Vegeta surpass Goku at least once, the franchise may never place him above Goku. This, however, is not something fans should be concerned about, as it aligns with the series’ overall design. That said, this does not mean Vegeta is inferior to Goku in any way. In fact, in certain aspects, Vegeta has proven himself to be stronger emotionally than Goku.
Dragon Ball Daima showcased Vegeta expressing more human emotions than Goku ever has, which is ironic given that Goku was raised by humans while Vegeta was not, yet Vegeta appears more emotionally mature. Once again, this ties back to the series’ intended structure. However, it is important to note that with Vegeta also achieving Super Saiyan 3, it appears the franchise may be moving toward giving him his due, and perhaps in the future, fans might finally see Vegeta defeat Goku at least once in the Dragon Ball franchise.
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