Most “best gym attacker” lists assume your Pokémon has only one charge move. But in real solo gym takedowns, the second charge move matters more than people realize: it lets one Pokémon cover two damage types and dodge resistance walls without retreating. This guide ranks the fastest single-Pokémon gym sweepers in Pokémon GO, simulating three full cycles of the Top 100 bulkiest gym defenders. Mega and Shadow variants are split out so you can pick by what you actually own.
Why the Second Charge Move Matters
- Type coverage: Most gym defenders are bulky generalists (Blissey, Snorlax, Dragonite, Tyranitar). A Fighting attacker with only one Fighting charge move gets resistance-walled by Flying / Ghost / Psychic defenders — but adding a coverage move (e.g. Ice Punch on Lucario) unlocks fast clears against those.
- Energy timing: Two charge moves means you can fire whichever has more energy banked, instead of waiting to fill a single bar. Net result: more total charge-move damage per gym battle.
- Cost reality: The Stardust + candy cost to unlock a second charge is real, but for the Pokémon on this list it pays for itself in clearing time across hundreds of gym battles.
How This Ranking Was Calculated
- Simulation: Single-Pokémon time to clear the Top 100 bulkiest defenders × 3 cycles. Both charge moves are unlocked and used optimally.
- Color-coding (in the original JP source): Blue = at least one charge move hits super-effective, Green = neutral only, Red = both moves resisted. The leaderboard rewards Pokémon whose two charge moves cover the most defenders in blue.
- Two leaderboards: “Mega + Shadow excluded” (accessible / always-available) and “All eligible” (top-end optimization).
- Source data: based on values recalculated on this site from the live Pokémon GO game master — Doctor Pokégogo’s own DPS / Stat Product / GBL meta analytics.
Last updated: 2026-04-29.
Top Picks — Mega & Shadow Excluded
.png)
Zacian (Crowned Sword)
Fairy / Steel — Highest Atk in the game and Behemoth Blade ignores certain damage modifiers. With Play Rough as a second charge, Zacian sweeps Dragon, Dark, Fighting, and even some Steel defenders in one go.
Lucario
Fighting / Steel — Counter is one of the highest-damage Fast Moves in the game. With Aura Sphere + Power-Up Punch, Lucario clears Normal/Steel/Ice/Dark defenders fast and uses PUP to maintain damage on resistant matchups.
Blaziken
Fire / Fighting — Counter + Blast Burn (Community Day move) + Focus Blast or Aura Sphere. Dual STAB on two essential gym types makes Blaziken a hyper-efficient Counter user with strong coverage.
Mewtwo
Psychic — High Atk stat + extremely flexible move pool. Confusion + Psystrike + Shadow Ball / Ice Beam covers Fighting, Poison, Ghost, and Dragon defenders at once.
Rampardos
Rock — Highest base Attack of any non-Mega / non-Legendary in the game. Smack Down + Rock Slide + Outrage gives surprising Dragon coverage. Glassy, but for solo gym sweep purposes, the damage rate makes up for it.
Top Picks — Mega & Shadow Included
Mega Lucario
Fighting / Steel — The single fastest gym sweeper in the game. Counter + Aura Sphere + Power-Up Punch is one of the highest-DPS movesets ever assembled.
Mega Blaziken
Fire / Fighting — Edges out Mega Lucario in some matchups thanks to dual-type coverage. Counter + Blast Burn + Focus Blast is the optimal kit.
Zacian (Crowned Sword)
Fairy / Steel — The only non-Mega / non-Shadow Pokémon to crack the top 5 of this leaderboard. Extraordinary feat given the field.
Mega Mewtwo Y
Psychic — Highest non-Shadow Atk stat in the game. Confusion + Psystrike + Shadow Ball is unstoppable on Fighting / Poison / Ghost defenders.
Shadow Blaziken
Fire / Fighting — Shadow boost (1.2× Atk) on top of Blaziken’s already excellent dual-STAB kit. Counter + Aura Sphere + Blast Burn.
Surprising Honorable Mentions
| Pokémon | Why It Surprised the Sim | |
|---|---|---|
 |
Mega Salamence | Fly + Hydro Pump (yes, Hydro Pump) covers Steel / Rock defenders that walled most Dragon attackers. Unconventional but works. |
 |
Mega Rayquaza | Dragon Tail + Outrage + Aerial Ace gives unprecedented type coverage; ranks just outside the top 5. |
 |
Shadow Mamoswine | Powder Snow + Avalanche + Bulldoze hits both Flying and Steel defenders effectively. |
Related Resources
- Optimal Gym Attack Team — Shortest-Path Analysis — full 6-Pokémon team for gym sweeps.
- IV Checker — calculate Stat Product for any gym attacker.
- Type Ranking — DPS / eDPS leaders by attack type.
- Best Pokémon to Use Rare Candy On — companion to second-charge investment decisions.
- All Pokémon Ratings — drill-downs.
About the Author
Doctor Pokégogo (about page) has been publishing data-driven Pokémon GO analyses since 2020. Gym evaluations on this page derive from the same data set used in the Type Ranking page; methodology details are linked there.
