Pokemon GO: How to Beat Sierra (May 2023)

Here's the full lineup for Sierra's Pokemon in Pokemon GO, and some of the best potential counters for each of them.

Here’s what you need to know about how to beat Sierra in Pokemon GO. Team GO Rocket is Pokemon GO’s version of Team Rocket from the mainline Pokemon games. In this game, the crime syndicate has a chance to appear at PokeStops randomly throughout the day. A PokeStop with a dark blue color and a spinning cube indicates that a Team GO Rocket member has taken it over. Team GO Rocket balloons may also appear overhead, offering more battles and Rocket Radars.

The Team GO Rocket balloons appear once every six hours. Your first battles will be against grunts, which reward you with a chance to capture their Shadow Pokemon and a Radar Components. If you combine your six Components to make the Rocket Radar and equip it, the balloons will make you battle Leaders instead of grunts. You can combine these Rocket Radars into Super Rocket Radars, which will cause Giovanni or his decoys to battle you instead. 

Here are the possible Team GO Rocket Members you can face:

What is Sierra’s Lineup of Pokemon in Pokemon GO?

Sierra’s lineup of Pokemon is currently:

  1. Drowzee
  2. Lapras, Blaziken, or Sharpedo
  3. Houndoom, Nidoqueen, or Shiftry

How to beat Sierra in Pokemon GO

Defeating Sierra in Pokemon GO is easy as long as you know the counters of each Pokemon he might throw out. Let’s take a look at the counters for each possible Pokemon.

Drowzee

The best counters against Sierra’s Drowzee in Pokemon GO are:

  • Gengar: Shadow Claw, Shadow Ball
  • Darkrai: Snarl, Dark Pulse/Shadow Ball
  • Dragapult: Hex, Shadow Ball
  • Chandelure: Hex, Shadow Ball

Lapras

The best counters against Sierra’s Lapras in Pokemon GO are:

  • Excadrill: Mud-Slap, Drill Run/Earthquake
  • Landorus (Therian): Extrasensory/Mud Shot, Earth Power
  • Garchomp: Mud Shot, Earth Power/Earthquake
  • Groudon: Mud Shot, Earthquake
  • Rhyperior: Mud-Slap, Earthquake

Blaziken

The best counters against Sierra’s Blaziken in Pokemon GO are:

  • Calyrex (Shadow Rider): Confusion, Psychic/Psyshock
  • Mewtwo: Confusion/Psycho Cut, Psystrike/Psychic
  • Hoopa (Unbound): Confusion, Psychic
  • Deoxys (Attack): Zen Headbutt, Psycho Boost
  • Calyrex (Ice Rider): Confusion, Psychic
  • Deoxys (Attack): Zen Headbutt, Zap Cannon

Sharpedo

The best counters against Sierra’s Sharpedo in Pokemon GO are:

  • Urshifu (Single Strike): Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Conkeldurr: Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Zacian (Crowned Sword): Quick Attack, Play Rough
  • Deoxys (Attack): Poison Jab, Zap Cannon
  • Zekrom: Charge Beam, Wild Charge
  • Thundurus (Therian): Thunder Shock, Thunderbolt
  • Urshifu (Rapid Strike): Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Thundurus (Therian): Volt Switch, Thunderbolt
  • Lucario: Counter, Aura Sphere
  • Deoxys (Normal): Charge Beam, Thunderbolt

Houndoom

The best counters against Sierra’s Houndoom in Pokemon GO are:

  • Lucario: Counter, Aura Sphere
  • Terrakion: Smack Down, Sacred Sword
  • Conkeldurr: Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Landorus (Therian): Mud Shot/Rock Throw, Earthquake/Earth Power
  • Urshifu (Single Strike): Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Kingler: Bubble, Crabhammer
  • Rampardos: Smack Down, Rock Slide
  • Urshifu (Rapid Strike): Counter, Dynamic Punch

Nidoqueen

The best counters against Sierra’s Nidoqueen in Pokemon GO are:

  • Mewtwo: Confusion/Psycho Cut, Psychic/Psystrike
  • Calyrex (Shadow Rider): Confusion, Psychic
  • Darmanitan (Galarian Zen): Ice Fang, Avalanche
  • Calyrex (Shadow Rider): Confusion, Psyshock
  • Hoopa (Unbound): Confusion, Psychic
  • Calyrex (Ice Rider): Confusion, Avalanche
  • Deoxys (Attack): Zen Headbutt, Psycho Boost

Shiftry

The best counters against Sierra’s Shiftry in Pokemon GO are:

  • Darmanitan (Galarian Zen): Ice Fang, Overheat
  • Darmanitan (Standard): Incinerate/Fire Fang, Overheat
  • Lucario: Counter, Aura Sphere
  • Volcarona: Fire Spin, Overheat
  • Urshifu (Single Strike): Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Urshifu (Rapid Strike): Counter, Dynamic Punch
  • Chandelure: Fire Spins/Incinerate, Overheat
  • Reshiram: Fire Fang, Overheat

What do I get for beating Sierra in Pokemon GO?

Team GO Rocket leaders give you a chance to capture the shadow version of their first summoned Pokemon. For beating Sierra, players can catch Shadow Drowzee (with a chance at a shiny).

For more related content, guides, lists, and Pokemon, check out our Pokemon GO section. You may also like our Pokemon GO effectiveness and weakness chart.