Ash's Opponents In The Pokemon Master Class Have Been Revealed - Here's How He Can Win

thegamer.com:

A new episode of Pokemon Journeys aired in Japan on Friday, and in it, Ash finally ascended to the highest class in the World Coronation Series. After defeating Raihan, Ash brought his rank to eight, moving him into the Master Class where he will face his final opponents. At the end of the episode, the full Masters Eight was revealed, and while Ash certainly has some stiff competition ahead of him, it’s clearer than ever that he’s on track to become the Pokemon Master he’s always aspired to be.

The Masters Eight is made up almost entirely of regional champions, as well as Alain, who defeated Ash with his Mega Charizard to become the Kalos League Champion. The eight contenders are: Leon, Lance, Steven, Cynthia, Iris, Daintha, Alain, and Ash. All of Ash’s upcoming battles will be rematches, and though Ash has yet to defeat several of these masters, he’s in a better position now than ever before.

We don’t know exactly what Ash’s final lineup will be as the return of Greninja suggests there might be a last minute swap, but based on his last fight with Raihain, Ash’s team consists of Pikachu, Dragonite, Gengar, Lucario, Sirfetch’d, and Dracovish. That’s a powerful team with great coverage, but what makes his lineup especially powerful is the battle gimmicks Ash has mastered. With his Z-Ring, Pikachu is able to use its Z-Move 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt, the most powerful Z-Move Ash can access. His Key Stone allows Lucario to Mega-Evolve, which is a somewhat recent discovery for him. Additionally, Ash has a Dynamax Band, which he uses to Gigantamax Gengar. In the most recent episode, Gigantamax Gengar used Max Starfall for the first time. If Greninja does rejoin his team, Ash will also have Ash-Greninja, one of the most