Everything you need to know about the return of Rayquaza.
Rayquaza appearing in Pokemon Go raids is invariably one of the most exciting reasons pick up your phone and head outside. The Sky High Pokémon is a fan-favourite Dragon-type Pokémon. Not only does it have extremely good stats, but it looks awesome and it’s Mega Evolution is one of (if not, the) the most powerful Pokémon in the Pokémon Go! (Very appropriate considering Mega Rayquaza once broke competitive play for the main series.) Since you’ll definitely be fighting this Pokémon when it appears, let’s take a look at the Rayquaza counters and weaknesses.
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Rayquaza counters and weaknesses in Pokémon Go
Beating Rayquaza in a raid will give you the opportunity to catch this super-powerful Pokémon. Below you’ll find the counters and weaknesses for Rayquaza to help you achieve this:
Rayquaza weaknesses
Rayquaza type — Dragon and Flying-type
Double-weak against:
- Ice
Weak to:
- Dragon
- Fairy
- Rock
Slighty Resistant to:
- Grass
- Ground
Resistant to:
- Bug
- Fighting
- Fire
- Water
Best Rayquaza counters
Rayquaza Mega counters
When it comes to picking a Mega counter for Rayquaza, you want to focus on Ice-types. Both Mega Abomasnow and Mega Glalie will work well here. Though, if you have a Mewtwo which knows Ice Beam, you can always use either Mega Mewtwo X or Y.
Rayquaza non-Mega counters
Since Rayquaza is doubly weak to Ice-type Pokémon, you’ll want to bring your strongest ice cold Pokémon into battle. This means White Kyurem, Black Kyurem, Shadow Mamoswine, Baxcalibur and regular old Kyurem. Though you can’t go wrong with a non-Shadow Mamoswine!
Go Fest 2026: Global has arrived! There’s two quests — Genetic Mastery and A Thunderous Discovery — plus you’ll want to know the habitat hour and raid schedule. Take the time to add Bouffalant and Tropius to your Pokédex too. Don’t forget about the Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Mewtwo X counters as well. There’s a lot to do in Pokémon Go outside of the current event! From the Go Battle League, Remote Trading, PokéStop Showcase, Routes and Max Battles. Don’t forget to catch rare Pokémon while you’re at it.
How to beat Rayquaza
As I mentioned in the section above, the best way to grind Rayquaza down into the dust is by using Ice-types. I mean, why would you even consider using another type when the green dragon is doubly weak to Ice? Even more so now we have White Kyurem with Ice Burn in the meta! Yes I will admit, being Dragon-types themselves does make the Kyurem’s weak to Rayquaza but you’re slightly going to get some excellent hits in before (if) they fall.
If you do want to venture outside of Ice, then Rock is the best place to go since both Dragon and Flying-types are weak to it. Ideal Rock-type counters include Rhyperior, Gigalith, Tyrantrum, Terrakion and Rampardos.
Rayquaza CP in Pokémon Go
Here you can find the CP levels for battling and attempting to catch Rayquaza in Pokémon Go::
Rayquaza CP Levels
- Raid Boss CP — 49,808 CP
- CP range for catching Rayquaza — 2102–2191 CP
- Weather Boost CP (Windy) range for catching Rayquaza — 2627 to 2739 CP
- Max Rayquaza CP — 4336 CP
Rayquaza Moveset in Pokémon Go
Best Rayquaza Moveset
Rayquaza’s best moveset is, by far, Dragon Tail as a Fast Move and Dragon Ascent as a Charged Move. Using this moveset makes Rayquaza incredibly powerful! But there’s a catch… If you want to use Dragon Ascent, then you need to ensure you have a Meteorite and enough Mega Rayquaza Energy to Mega Evolve Rayquaza. Yes, that’s right — Dragon Ascent can only be used by Mega Rayquaza!
Thankfully, I can recommend an alternative moveset for Rayquaza in the form of Dragon Tail as a Fast Move and Breaking Swipe as a Charged Move. While not as overpowering as the above moveset, this one is a dangerous one to bring into the battlefield.
Fast Moves
- Air Slash (Flying)
- Dragon Tail (Dragon)
Charged Moves
- Aerial Ace (Flying)
- Ancient Power (Rock)
- Breaking Swipe (Dragon, requires Elite Charged TM)
- Dragon Ascent (Flying, requires Meteorite)
- Hurricane (Flying, requires Elite Charged TM)
- Outrage (Dragon)
Is Rayquaza shiny in Pokémon Go?
Yes, shiny Rayquaza is in Pokémon Go. It was released in July 2019.
Shiny Rayquaza is, by far, one of the coolest shiny Pokémon. Out with the green and in with the black. I lobe this change, because it makes Rayquaza’s markings stand out more. Definitely one to add to your collection if you don’t have it already.
Everything else we know about Rayquaza
Rayquaza is a legendary Pokémon who hails from the Hoenn region. It is part of the elemental trio, alongside Groudon and Kyogre.
The members of this legendary trio are each a guardian of different elemental sphere. Groudon is the guardian of the lithosphere (land), Kyogre watches over the hydrosphere (the world’s seas), and Rayquaza guards the atmosphere.
When Groudon and Kyogre clash, which they inevitably do, Rayquaza descends from the sky to stop their fight and help them return to their slumbers.
When you see either Groudon or Kyogre make an appearance in Pokémon Go, you know Rayquaza isn’t far behind.
Good luck catching Rayquza!
