The World Martial Arts Tournament (Tenkaichi Budōkai, literally "the strongest martial arts gathering under the heavens") is Dragon Ball's world championship of fighting. It is where the series changes its skin, from a Journey to the West style adventure to a story built around battles, with the ring as a stage for friendships, rivalries and twists. Goku entered it several times, but won it only once.
How the tournament changed Dragon Ball
At first the manga was not popular. Toriyama loved the travelling-adventure side of the story, while his editor Kazuhiko Torishima kept reminding him of the weak reader response. Tired of the pressure, the author leaned into combat with the first tournament, and the series took off; he later admitted it felt good to watch it grow. The island hosting the event is inspired by Bali, which Toriyama visited in 1985.
Ring rules
- You lose if you fall out of the ring, stay down for a ten count or give up.
- Weapons and killing are forbidden, on pain of disqualification.
- In the 21st tournament's preliminaries each bout lasts one minute and, oddly enough, crying also counts as a loss.
- If the final ends in a double knockout, the winner is whoever gets up first and declares himself champion.
The tournament was originally held every five years, but after the record turnout of the 21st it moved to every three. The prize grows from 500,000 zeni in the early editions to 10 million in the Mr. Satan era.
21st tournament: the master in disguise
Master Roshi enters as Jackie Chun to keep his students from winning too soon and getting big-headed. Krillin beats Bacterian, the fighter who never bathes, once Goku points out that Krillin has no nose. In the final Goku sees the full moon and turns into a Great Ape; Jackie Chun destroys the moon with a Kamehameha and the match ends in a double knockout. The first one back on his feet is the old master.
22nd tournament: Crane versus Turtle
Enter Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu, students of the rival school. Tien breaks Yamcha's leg, and Jackie Chun withdraws against him in the semifinals. The final against Goku is brutal and decided by a hair: both fall out of the ring together, but a passing car clips Goku, who touches the ground first. Right afterwards Tien breaks with his master and moves closer to the heroes.
23rd tournament: Goku's only win
This is the edition with the highest stakes. In the quarterfinals Goku fights a mysterious girl who turns out to be Chi-Chi, and by the end of the match the two agree to get married. In the semifinals he beats Tien, while Kami, borrowing a young man's body, falls into his own trap against Piccolo. The Goku versus Piccolo final levels the arena: Goku wins, but spares his rival because Piccolo's death would also kill Kami and, with him, the Dragon Balls.
24th and 25th: the Mr. Satan era
The 24th is never shown: Mr. Satan wins it and enters the 25th as defending champion. That edition has a junior division, won by Trunks against Goten, and preliminaries based on a machine that measures punching power. Then everything falls apart: Videl is beaten to a pulp by Spopovich, Babidi's minions steal Gohan's energy, and Goku, Vegeta and the Supreme Kai abandon the competition. Mr. Satan pushes for a battle royale among the five remaining fighters, and Android 18 lets herself be knocked out in exchange for the prize money.
28th tournament: passing the torch
In the manga's finale, ten years later, Goku faces Uub, a boy with enormous potential. After the match he leaves with him to train him, and the tournament is called off. It is the last image of Dragon Ball: not a victory, but a new beginning.
From the ring to the multiverse
The spirit of the tournament lives on beyond the island. Cell stages the Cell Games, announcing that he is reviving the tournament: Gohan wins, but Mr. Satan takes the credit. Dragon Ball Super raises the scale, first with a contest between Universes 6 and 7, then with the Tournament of Power, a 48-minute battle royale between teams of ten fighters in which the defeated universes are erased. The last one standing is Android 17, who uses the winner's wish to bring everyone back.
The editions at a glance
| Edition | Winner | Key moment |
|---|---|---|
| 21st | Jackie Chun (Master Roshi) | Great Ape Goku and the destroyed moon |
| 22nd | Tien Shinhan | The car that decides the final against Goku |
| 23rd | Goku | Final against Piccolo and the proposal to Chi-Chi |
| 24th | Mr. Satan | Never shown |
| 25th | Mr. Satan (junior: Trunks) | Babidi derails the tournament |
| 28th | None | Goku leaves with Uub |
| Tournament of Power | Universe 7 | Android 17 last in the ring |
Did you know? The tournaments in the original manga almost always follow the same pattern: Yamcha goes out in the quarterfinals, often to the strongest opponent, and Goku reaches the final to face whoever beat his friends.
Seen today, the World Martial Arts Tournament tells the story of Goku's growth better than any arc: two defeats as a boy, the victory that makes him an adult and, in the end, the choice to leave the ring to those who come after him. For the full context, see our guide to the Dragon Ball series.