Learn how to defeat Giovanni in Pokémon during the month of July 2026 in Pokémon GO. This page details Giovanni’s Pokémon lineup, the most effective counters, and the best team to win against Giovanni. We also list the steps to find Giovanni, understand the rewards for defeating him, and common issues with Team GO Rocket Special Research.
- 🔔 Currently being updated with the start of Flying Taxi: Taken Over
- 🔗 Other GO Rocket guides: Arlo lineup and counters, Sierra lineup and counters, Cliff lineup and counters, Team GO Rocket Grunt lineups
Giovanni’s Pokémon Lineup
Giovanni’s current lineup includes Shadow Pokémon such as Persian, Rhyperior, Nidoking, Kangaskhan, and Reshiram.
Slot #1
Slot #2
Slot #3
Best Pokémon for defeating Giovanni
One of the best Teams you can use against Team GO Rocket Giovanni in Pokémon GO is Lucario, Poliwrath, and Swampert.
- Lucario/Machamp – or any other strong Fighting-type – is a great choice against Giovanni, as Persian, Rhyperior, and Kangaskhan are weak to Fighting-type moves. You more or less want a Fighting-type on your team.
- Poliwrath/Kyogre – Flexes STAB Water and Fighting, which actually covers the entire team of Giovanni (bar Machamp!). Quaquaval is another option, but Poliwrath has a more efficient moveset.
- Swampert – Swampert can provide coverage for Rhyperior and Reshiram, which makes them quite strong and valuable in this fight.
- Mewtwo is a great option for Machamp who is the outlier of Giovanni’s team. Rayquaza with flying type moves will also hit hard, but take a lot of damage due to it being a glass cannon.
- Shadow Reshiram is weak to Dragon, Ground and Rock types. Eternatus, either form of Palkia and Garchomp with dragon moves will make swift work of it. It can have dragon moves of it’s own, so in this case, opt for Rhyperior.
💡 Note: In Trainer Battles, counters need not always be Pokémon that do super-effective damage. We include Pokémon that are more viable to defeat Giovanni, rather than those that do maximum damage. Defeating Giovanni rewards 4× Shadow Shards.
Shadow Persian Counters
Shadow Persian
Persian is a Normal-type Pokémon, weak to Fighting type moves. It takes reduced damage from Ghost type moves and has a wide move pool variety. Best counters are strong Fighters without a doubt.
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
Lucario
|
Force Palm, Power-Up Punch, Aura Sphere |
Machamp
|
Karate Chop, Cross Chop, Stone Edge |
Terrakion
|
Double Kick, Sacred Sword |
Resolute Keldeo
|
Low Kick, Secret Sword |
Conkeldurr
|
Counter, Dynamic Punch |
Open with a strong Pokémon that can burn Giovanni’s shields efficiently – the aim is at least one. Since we are always facing Persian, we strongly recommend going with a strong Fighting type.
Shadow Rhyperior Counters
Shadow Rhyperior
Rhyperior is a Rock/Ground-type Pokémon. Rhyperior is weak to Grass (2x), Water (2x), Fighting, Ground, Ice, and Steel moves. Use Water types to finish it off.
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
Swampert
|
Mud Shot, Hydro Cannon |
Kyogre
|
Waterfall, Origin Pulse |
Poliwrath
|
Bubble, Scald, Dynamic Punch |
Mamoswine
|
Powder Snow, Icicle Spear |
Quaquaval
|
Waterfall, Hydro Cannon, Close Combat |
Sceptile
|
Bullet Seed, Leaf Blade |
Kartana
|
Razor Leaf, Leaf Blade |
Shadow Machamp Counters
Shadow Machamp
Shadow Machamp is a Fighting-type, and as such is weak to Fairy, and Psychic. They don’t have any weakness crossover with the rest of the line up, making their coverage trickier.
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
Rayquaza
|
Air Slash, Dragon Ascent |
Mewtwo
|
Psycho Cut, Psystrike |
Tapu Lele
|
Confusion, Nature’s Madness |
Yveltal
|
Gust, Oblivion Wing |
Metagross
|
Zen Headbutt, Psychic |
Crowned Sword Zacian
|
Air Slash, Play Rough |
Shadow Kangaskhan Counters
Shadow Kangaskhan
Kangaskhan is a pure Normal-type Pokémon. So, it is only weak to Fighting type moves. It takes reduced damage from Ghost-type moves. Be aware that Kangaskhan can hit pretty hard!
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
|
Lucario
|
Force Palm, Power-Up Punch, Aura Sphere |
|
Machamp
|
Karate Chop, Cross Chop |
|
Terrakion
|
Double Kick, Sacred Sword |
|
Conkeldurr
|
Counter, Dynamic Punch |
|
Resolute Keldeo
|
Low Kick, Secret Sword |
Shadow Reshiram Counters
Shadow Reshiram
Giovanni’s Shadow Reshiram is a Dragon and Fire-type Pokémon. It is weak to Dragon Ground and Rock-type moves, which means you have a wide choice of counters available.
Shadow Reshiram can have Dragon Breath or Fire Fang for its fast move, and Crunch, Draco Meteor, Overheat, Fusion Flare, or Stone Edge for charged moves. Be weary of dragons against a Shadow Reshiram with a double dragon moveset.
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
Origin Palkia
|
Dragon Tail, Spacial Rend |
Palkia
|
Dragon Tail, Draco Meteor |
Eternatus
|
Dragon Tail, Dynamax Cannon |
Garchomp
|
Dragon Tail, Breaking Swipe |
Haxorus
|
Dragon Tail, Breaking Swipe |
|
Rhyperior
|
Mud-Slap, Rock Wrecker |
How to find Giovanni in Pokémon GO
To find Giovanni, progress through GO Pass: Flying Taxi – Taken Over to receive a Super Rocket Radar and chase down Giovanni. You can claim rewards from the GO Pass until Wednesday, July 1, at 7:59 p.m. local time.
- It works like a regular Rocket Radar, but it tracks Giovanni, not GO Rocket leaders.
- Giovanni cannot be found in Team GO Rocket balloons, he is only available to encounter at PokéStops.
- The Super Rocket Radar doesn’t immediately lead you to Giovanni; it displays locations of both decoy Grunts disguised as Giovanni and Giovanni’s actual hideout.
- You’ll need to approach each PokéStop and investigate yourself to find where Giovanni’s hiding.
- You can rematch if you lose, and your Super Rocket Radar will be consumed if you win.
- If you have both your Super Rocket Radar and standard Rocket Radar equipped, your Team GO Rocket balloon will only bring you grunt encounters. You will need to disable your Super Rocket Radar to encounter leaders in balloons.
Rewards for defeating Giovanni in Pokémon GO
Trainers who manage to defeat Giovanni will receive selection of rare reward bundles, including the chance to get a Legendary Shadow Pokémon.
- Trainers receive 5,000 Stardust for defeating Giovanni
- Defeating Giovanni rewards three item bundles including Max Potions or Max Revives
- Trainers have the opportunity to catch the Legendary Shadow Pokémon used by Giovanni at the moment of defeating him.
- Giovanni does not drop Strange Eggs as a reward, regardless of open egg inventory slots.
Reward bundles
Guaranteed
5000×
Stardust
Random drop of three of these (can stack)
-
4×
Revive
-
4×
Max Revive
-
4×
Hyper Potion
-
4×
Max Potion
-
1×
Unova Stone
Defeating Team GO Rocket Boss Giovanni yields three item bundles, each of which has an equal chance of containing 4 Max Potions or 4 Max Revives. As an example, a typical reward drop might contain 8 Max Potions and 4 Max Revives.
