In Dragon Ball Z, Yamcha defeated one villain that Vegeta failed to beat. In terms of their power levels, Yamcha is hardly comparable to the Saiyan Prince. In fact, Yamcha has an unfortunate reputation as one of the weakest heroes in the Dragon Ball universe.

At no point in the franchise has Yamcha’s power been on par with Vegeta’s. When Nappa and Vegeta first arrived, there was a significant gap between them and the human Z-Warriors that couldn’t be overcome. And while Yamcha, Tien, and Krillin have far exceeded the power levels they possessed during the Saiyan Saga, Vegeta’s strength has grown exponentially. As a result, the gap has widened further and further, with Yamcha slipping into irrelevancy before the end of Dragon Ball Z. And while this situation applies to all of the human fighters in the franchise, the problem is particularly serious for Yamcha, who wasn’t even brought along for the fight with Golden Frieza or the Tournament of Power in Dragon Ball Super.

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In spite of his low standing in the Dragon Ball power structure, it’s worth noting that during the Frieza Saga, Yamcha outdid Vegeta himself when he defeated Recoome on King Kai’s planet. Shortly after the villain’s introduction, he engaged in an intense battle with Gohan, Krillin, and Vegeta. Even with all three going against him, the characters couldn’t bring down the Ginyu Force member, who was just too powerful for them. Yet somehow, Yamcha made enough gains through his training with King Kai that he was able to overpower Recoome in a one-on-one fight. A big part of what’s so surprising about that is what little time had passed since Vegeta’s fight with Recoome. Considering that the battle with Frieza was still going on at this time, Yamcha couldn’t have beaten Recoome more than a few days after the villain’s victory over Vegeta.

How Strong Is Yamcha In Dragon Ball?

Dragon Ball Z Yamcha vs Recoome

It’s certainly true that Yamcha has underachieved in comparison to some of the other Dragon Ball heroes, but at the same time, the character is actually much stronger than he’s often given credit for. His win over Recoome in Dragon Ball Z is evidence of the progress he’s quietly made in Dragon Ball’s story. Another moment that highlighted his prowess in battle was his battle with Olibu near the end of Dragon Ball Z. Defeating someone strong enough to fight Pikkon elevated Yamcha to the level of Perfect Cell and proved that while he may never be able to compete with Goku and Vegeta, he’s still a force to be reckoned with.

Because of the decision not to give Yamcha any fighting to do in Dragon Ball Super, there’s no way of knowing if his power level has dropped off since Dragon Ball Z, stayed the same, or risen higher. If the next Dragon Ball anime gives Yamcha another shot at the limelight, he can get a chance to once again demonstrate to his fellow Z-Warriors that it would be a mistake to take his fighting skills lightly. If granted the opportunity, Yamcha can have a long overdue, shocking victory reminiscent of his win over Recoome.

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