How to battle a Fashion Challenger in Pokemon Go: All lineups & counters
Niantic / DexertoFashion Challengers have begun popping up at Pokestops in Pokemon Go, and they provide Trainers with a new challenge to take on as they celebrate Fashion Week 2021.
Fashion Week is the latest event during the ongoing Season of Mischief in Pokemon Go. As well as the debut of Furfrou and its many Trim forms, there’s a new type of NPC in the game to battle: Fashion Challengers.
While players are used to taking on Team Go Rocket Grunts and villainous leaders like Arlo at Pokestops, they might not be used to seeing Fashion Challengers and their stylish Pokemon pop up as they walk around the overworld.
You’ll need to beat these Fashion Challengers in order to complete Fashion Week’s Timed Research tasks, so we’re going to explain how to fight them, the lineups they might use, and the best counters to defeat them below.
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NianticWhat is a Fashion Challenger in Pokemon Go?
Similar to the Team Go Rocket Grunts you’ve probably seen at Pokestops in the past, Fashion Challengers are NPCs that will take over random Pokestops on the overworld and challenge you to a battle if you interact with them.
Fashion Challengers will appear during the Fashion Week event, which runs from September 21 at 10AM until September 28 at 8PM local time. You can tell if a Pokestop has a Fashion Challenger from a distance because it will shake.
There are multiple Fashion Challengers you can encounter, and each one has its own lineup of stylish Pokemon to take down. These battles follow a familiar format, with each Challenger having three different Pokemon to defeat.
NianticAll Fashion Challenger lineups & counters
Below, you’ll find all of the Fashion Challengers and the Pokemon they will use:
| Fashion Challenger | Pokemon #1 | Pokemon #2 | Pokemon #3 |
| Cool Challenger | Furfrou (Normal) | Sneasel (Fashionable) | Gothitelle |
| Eccentric Challenger | Furfrou (Star) | Alolan Graveler | Blitzle (Fashionable) |
| Quirky Challenger | Furfrou (Matron) | Braixen | Shinx (Fashionable) |
| Rugged Challenger | Furfrou (Debutante) | Kirlia (Fashionable) | Mienshao |
| Sassy Challenger | Furfrou (Dandy) | Butterfree (Fashionable) | Vaporeon |
| Slick Challenger | Furfrou (Diamond) | Croagunk (Fashionable) | Obstagoon |
Unlike the Team Go Rocket Grunts and Leaders, these Fashion Challengers don’t have random lineups, meaning you’ll always know which Pokemon they’ll send out ahead of time by checking the table above.
This makes defeating them relatively easy with the right counters. You should always begin the match with your best Fighting-type, as every Fashion Challenger will always send out the Normal-type Furfrou first.
Then it’s a case of studying what types their following two Pokemon will be, and choosing the appropriate counters. You can use our Pokemon Go type effectiveness chart for help with strengths and weaknesses.
Pokemon Go Fashion Challenger rewards
NianticIf you manage to defeat a Fashion Challenger in Pokemon Go, you’ll be rewarded with a range of essential items like Poke Balls, Stardust, and Max Revives.
The main appeal of battling Fashion Challengers, though, is that Fashion Week’s Timed Research requires you to do this to unlock some great rewards including encounters with Furfrou, Sneasel, Frillish, and more.
That’s everything you need to know about battling Fashion Challengers! For more tips and guides like this one, check out our Pokemon Go home page.