A Triple Fighting Chance! - Recap

The battle between Ash and Sumono is about to begin. The referee starts off by explaining the rules of the battle. Dawn and her Pokémon are in cheerleading outfits, and they begin to cheer for both Ash and Sumono. The battle begins. Sumono sends out a Machoke, and Dawn looks it up in her Pokédex. Ash sends out Staravia. Brock thinks that Ash made a good decision by sending out a Flying type. Staravia starts off with Quick Attack, but Machoke defends itself with Brick Break. Since Quick Attack didn't work, Staravia uses Gust. The Gust has more success. Then Staravia uses Aerial Ace. Sumono orders Machoke to avoid the attack and use Cross Chop. Machoke scores a direct hit on Staravia with Cross Chop. Dawn notices that Sumono fights very well even if her Pokémon is at a type disadvantage. Machoke then begins to hit Staravia with a series of Brick Breaks. Sumono orders Machoke to finish Staravia off with Seismic Toss. However, before Machoke can get its hands on Staravia, Staravia unleashes a Quick Attack on Machoke. Then Staravia uses Aerial Ace and hits Machoke. The attack is super effective against Machoke, and Machoke faints.

Sumono returns Machoke back to its Pokéball and congratulates Ash on the great combo of Aerial Ace and Quick Attack. Meanwhile, Team Rocket have snuck inside the gym. While Ash is doing his battle, they plan to steal all the gym's Pokémon. They find a room and open the door. Three gym trainers appear and offer a free massage for Team Rocket. Team Rocket gladly accepts the offer. The three gym trainers begin to crush Team Rocket and their bones, and Team Rocket realizes that it was just a trap.
Sumono sends out Meditite. Dawn warns Ash about Meditite's Psychic attacks. Staravia starts off with Quick Attack, but Meditite uses Detect to dodge the attack. Then Meditite uses Meditate. Brock explains that it is an attack that raises the power of the user. Staravia then uses Aerial Ace, but Meditite uses Detect again to dodge it. Then Meditite increases its power again with Meditate. Staravia uses Gust, and this time the attack hits Meditite, but Meditite just jumps off the wall and uses Drain Punch on Staravia. Staravia receives a lot of damage from the Drain Punch, especially since Meditite's power was increased, but Staravia is still standing. It uses Aerial Ace. Meditite counters with Confusion and slams Staravia to the ground. The effect of Confusion leaves Staravia confused. Ash returns Staravia back into its Pokéball.

Ash's second Pokémon is Chimchar. It's first attack is Scratch, and it hits Meditite. Sumono compliments on Chimchar's speed. She then orders Meditite to use Drain Punch. Meditite uses the attack, and it hits Chimchar. Then Meditite delivers several Drain Punches at Chimchar. Ash then tells Chimchar to use several Scratch attacks on Meditite. Meditite dodges a few of them with Detect, but Detect eventually fails, and it gets hit by one of Chimchar's Scratch attacks. Ash then orders Chimchar to use Flamethrower, followed up by a Flame Wheel. Before Flame Wheel can hit, Meditite uses Confusion to throw Chimchar into the wall. Chimchar is left confused from the Confusion, and Ash ends up returning it back into its Pokéball.

Ash sends out Staravia again. Realizing that Staravia's confusion has been cured, Sumono orders Meditite to use Drain Punch. Staravia counters with Gust. The Gust is more powerful than Meditite because of its damage received by Chimchar. With Meditite almost out, Staravia uses Brave Bird. Meditite tries to counter with Confusion, but the Brave Bird ends up hitting Meditite first. Meditite faints and Staravia wins the battle. Dawn is happy that Staravia was finally able to master the Brave Bird attack. Brock states that Brave Bird is still risky because the user receives recoil damage. Staravia looks exhausted so using another Brave Bird attack may put it in danger.

Sumono compliments on Ash and Staravia's success with Brave Bird. She then sends out her third Pokémon: Lucario. Ash orders Staravia to use Brave Bird again. Staravia uses the attack, but Lucario counters it with Metal Claw. The single attack from Lucario knocks Staravia out. Ash returns Staravia back into its Pokéball, and he realizes that Lucario is stronger than ever. Ash sends out Chimchar. Chimchar uses Flamethrower, but Lucario avoids the attack. Brock notices that Lucario's speed is much greater than Chimchar's. Because Flamethrower didn't work, Chimchar uses a Scratch attack instead. Lucario avoids the attack and then uses Force Palm. Chimchar is hit by Force Palm, but it manages to recover quickly. It uses Flame Wheel and scores a direct hit on Lucario. Ash orders Chimchar to use Flame Wheel again. Suddenly, Chimchar cannot move due to the paralysis effect from Force Palm. Sumono takes this chance and orders Lucario to use Bone Rush. Chimchar gets hit several times until it uses Dig to hide from Lucario. However, Lucario is able to seek out Chimchar's movements underground. When it finds Chimchar, it uses Aura Sphere to blast Chimchar out of the ground. Then Lucario finishes Chimchar off with Metal Claw. Chimchar faints, and Lucario wins the round.

Ash's last Pokémon is Buizel. Dawn and her Pokémon cheer for Ash and Sumono. Brock realizes that it is the last battle. He turns to his side and notices that Croagunk is missing. Meanwhile, Team Rocket are slowly recovering from their painful massage. They walk down the hallway until they see the Training Room. Jessie assumes that there are a lot of Pokémon inside doing their training. They open the doors only to see Croagunk training. Team Rocket sighs, and they close the door. Suddenly, they come face to face with Croagunk. Croagunk uses Poison Jab on Team Rocket and blasts them out of the gym.

Buizel attacks with Mystic Ball, and Lucario uses Aura Sphere. Both attacks collide into each other. The Aura Sphere, however, is much more powerful, and it hits Buizel. Lucario then uses Bone Rush, but Buizel dodges the attacks. Dawn knows that Buizel has some great speed. However, Lucario uses Bone Rush on Buizel's legs to make it trip. Buizel still stands it it fights back with Aqua Jet. Lucario tries to weaken Buizel with Metal Claw, but the Aqua Jet proves to be stronger. It knocks Lucario to the ground. Buizel fires rapid Sonicbooms. Lucario blocks them all with its Bone Rush attack. Then Lucario fires three Aura Spheres at Buizel. Buizel uses Sonicboom to destroy them all. Lucario suddenly appears in front of Buizel. It blasts Buizel with a Force Palm, and Buizel falls to the ground. Hoping to finish the battle, Sumono orders Lucario to use Aura Sphere. Just before Lucario can fire the attack, Buizel manages to get back up onto its feet. A small ball of energy appears between Buizel's hands. Sumono notices that Buizel is charging up for a Water Pulse. Lucario fires the Aura Sphere at Buizel, and Buizel releases its Water Pulse towards Lucario. Both attacks collide into each other.

Neither Lucario or Buizel are close to giving up. Buizel uses Aqua Jet one more time, and Lucario uses Force Palm. Both Pokémon end up getting slammed into the wall. However, they recover quickly and jump into the air. Lucario releases another Aura Sphere, and Buizel uses Water Pulse. Both attacks collide into each other. The explosion causes Lucario and Buizel to fall to the ground, and a hole is blasted right through the roof of the gym. Lucario manages to get up, but Buizel is still down. Sumono orders Lucario to use Metal Claw. The attack weakenes Buizel even more. The referee is about to declare Sumono the winner, but Buizel still fights to get up. Buizel manages to get back on its feet, but it can barely move. Lucario uses its Bone Rush attack. Before the attack can hit, it suddenly begins to rain. The rain automatically increases Buizel's speed, and it dodges Lucario's Bone Rush attacks. Brock explains that Buizel's Swift Swim ability makes Buizel move faster when it rains. Ash orders Buizel to use Aqua Jet. Lucario counters with Force Palm. Both Pokémon collide into each other. As a result, Buizel is left paralyzed. Ash and Sumono know that the battle is going to end soon. They tell their Pokémon to give it their all in the next attack. Ash orders Buizel to use Water Pulse, combining it with Aqua Jet, and Sumono orders Lucario to use Force Palm. Both Pokémon collide into each other, and an explosion occurs. When the smoke is clear, both Pokémon are seen standing. Then both of them fall to the ground. The battle ends up being a draw.

Sumono has decided to give Ash the badge anyway even though the battle was a draw. Sumono knows that Ash has showed her what a good battle really meant, so she is rewarding Ash with the Cobal Badge. Ash thanks Sumono for the badge. Sumono promises to remain as the gym leader of Tobari City. Ash and co.'s adventure through Sinnoh continues.