Long-haired Yamcha, with scars on his face, raises his arm and grits his teeth, wearing an orange gi, against a blue sky.

Yamcha: The Desert Bandit Turned Warrior

CharacterHumansDragon Ball

Yamcha is the former desert bandit Goku runs into at the very start of the manga, along with his companion Puar. Shy around girls, he becomes Bulma's boyfriend, Master Roshi's student and a competitor in three World Martial Arts Tournaments, going down in the quarterfinals every time. Here's a look back at his first meeting with Goku, his tournaments, his death against the Saibaman, his injury at the hands of Android 20, his appearances in Super, GT and Daima, and the voices that have brought him to life.

He fought Goku as early as the manga's eighth chapter, before becoming his friend: Yamcha is there from Dragon Ball all the way to Daima. Here's his story, from the sword to baseball.

Contents

The desert bandit who ran from girls

Yamcha first appears in chapter 7 of the Dragon Ball manga, published in Weekly Shōnen Jump on January 12, 1985; that chapter also marks the debut of his companion Puar. In the anime, he makes his entrance in episode 5, which aired in Japan on March 26, 1986.

At the time, he's a 16-year-old bandit who lives in the desert with Puar, an anthropomorphic cat, and robs travelers. His first outfit bears a calligraphic kanji, 楽, which means “pleasant.” In chapter 8, on learning that Goku is Grandpa Gohan's grandson, he deems him a worthy opponent and unleashes his signature technique on him, the Wolf Fang Fist, a flurry of punches and kicks.

The fight breaks off when Bulma wakes up: Yamcha admits he goes to pieces whenever a girl is around. When he hears about the Dragon Balls, he decides to steal them so he can wish to be cured of his phobia, because he dreams of getting married.

At Pilaf's castle, when Goku turns into a Great Ape, it's Yamcha and Puar who cut off his tail so he goes back to his normal form. At the end of this first quest, Bulma and Yamcha become a couple, and Bulma invites him to come live in the city with Puar.

Yamcha, in an orange scarf and green tunic, points at the yellow sky facing Puar, a blue cat seen from behind, in an ocher desert with a large white rock.
Yamcha, a 16-year-old bandit who lives in the desert with Puar, an anthropomorphic cat, and robs travelers: a scene from episode 5 of the Dragon Ball anime.

🥋 Yamcha sported a kanji on his first outfit; to wear one of the saga's kanji yourself on something warm, like the Kame symbol, check out our Dragon Ball sweaters and sweatshirts.

Jackie Chun, Tien Shinhan, Shen: three tournaments, three quarterfinals

At the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament (chapter 37), Yamcha faces Jackie Chun, the alias of Master Roshi, who even dodges his Wolf Fang Fist before blasting him out of the ring with a gust of wind. It's only after Fortuneteller Baba's tournament, in chapter 112, that Yamcha becomes Master Roshi's student, training under him for three years alongside Krillin.

At the 22nd tournament, Tien Shinhan has the draw rigged so he can face Yamcha in the very first quarterfinal. Yamcha unveils a new Wolf Fang Fist, then tries a Kamehameha that his opponent sends right back at him. Knocked out, he then has his leg broken by Tien, who comes down knee-first on him (chapter 118). Tien, who goes on to win the tournament, will later apologize to him, and Yamcha will forgive him.

At the 23rd tournament, Yamcha sports scars on his face, picked up during the three years of training leading up to it, though the series never shows how. In chapters 174 and 175, he faces Shen, whose body Kami has borrowed, and lands a hit thanks to the Spirit Ball, an energy sphere he steers from a distance, before falling out of the ring.

The tally: three World Martial Arts Tournaments, and every time a quarterfinal exit, against Jackie Chun, Tien Shinhan and then Shen. Right after beating Yamcha at the 22nd tournament, Tien told Chiaotzu that his opponent was probably the best of Master Roshi's three students, and concluded from this that he would win the competition himself.

In the tournament ring, Yamcha, wearing a red headband, raises his knee toward Jackie Chun, a white-bearded old man dressed in black, in midair in front of the crowd.
At the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament, Yamcha faces Jackie Chun, Master Roshi's alias: the first of his three lost quarterfinals (episode 22 of the Dragon Ball anime).
Chibi-style Yamcha keychain, orange gi and facial scars, hanging from a silver carabiner on a white background.

For fans of Yamcha

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The Saibaman, King Kai and the androids: Z's turning point

To get ready for the Saiyans' arrival, Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Krillin and Yajirobe train with Kami, who ends up declaring that they've all surpassed him (chapter 211). In the Dragon Ball Z anime, a few episodes also show Yamcha as a baseball player on the Taitans, where he wears number 00.

Against the Saibamen of Nappa and Vegeta (chapter 215), he volunteers in place of Krillin, who has already been brought back once by the Dragon Balls. He overpowers his opponent and thinks it's beaten, but the creature gets back up, latches onto him and self-destructs, killing him instantly. In the anime, that's episode 23 of Dragon Ball Z, which aired in Japan on October 18, 1989.

Once dead, he trains with King Kai, then he's brought back to life by a wish made to Porunga, the dragon of Namek. During the three years before the androids arrive, Yamcha and Bulma break up for good while staying friends, and Bulma turns to Vegeta.

In chapter 338, Android 20, alias Dr. Gero, lifts Yamcha up, drains his energy and pierces his chest. A Senzu Bean gets him back on his feet, and he's the one who then carries Goku, struck down by his heart virus, back to the Son family home to give him his medicine. At the Cell Games, Yamcha gives up on facing Cell, but has to fight a Cell Jr., who breaks his arm. During the Buu Saga, Yamcha is turned into chocolate and eaten along with most of the refugees at Kami's Lookout, before being brought back to life.

A green Saibaman clings to the chest of Yamcha, in an orange gi with a scar on his face, who grits his teeth on a rocky plain under a blue sky.
Against the Saiyans, the Saibaman Yamcha thought he'd beaten latches onto him before self-destructing, killing him instantly; a scene from the Dragon Ball Z anime.

⚾ In the anime, Yamcha trades his gi for a while for the Taitans' baseball uniform and cap; to put one on yourself, pick from our Dragon Ball caps.

Dragon Ball Super, GT and Daima: baseball and comebacks

In episode 70 of the Dragon Ball Super anime, which aired in Japan on December 11, 2016, Universes 6 and 7 face off at baseball. Yamcha invents a pitch that combines the speed of his Wolf Fang Fist with the control of his Spirit Ball. Roughed up by Vegeta and Champa, he runs to score the deciding run during the brawl between Beerus and Champa: he's found at the bottom of the crater their fight carved out, his hand on home plate, in the same pose as when he died against the Saibaman.

In the Dragon Ball Super manga, his name comes up to round out Universe 7's team for the Tournament of Power, before Goku picks Frieza instead. In the “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” arc (chapter 56), Yamcha beats three of Moro's henchmen while claiming to be one of the three strongest Earthlings.

At the end of Dragon Ball GT, he's seen fixing his car in the middle of the desert with Puar. In Dragon Ball Daima, he's celebrating Trunks's ninth birthday at Capsule Corporation when Gomah's wish turns him into a child, like Goku and his friends.

Yamcha, with long hair and facial scars, smiles in a white baseball uniform with a red collar and a printed 7, under a cloudy blue sky.
For the baseball game between Universes 6 and 7 in the Dragon Ball Super anime, Yamcha suits up and invents a pitch drawn from the Wolf Fang Fist and the Spirit Ball.

Yamcha's creation, name and voices

His name is pronounced like the Cantonese expression yum cha, which literally means “drink tea”; in fact, in the earliest illustrations, he was called “Yum Cha.” The character is said to echo Sha Wujing, one of the traveling companions in the Chinese novel Journey to the West, which Akira Toriyama drew on for Dragon Ball.

In Japanese, Yamcha was voiced by Tōru Furuya until 2024; in Dragon Ball Daima, Ryōta Suzuki takes over. In English, Christopher Sabat is his voice in Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super alike, as well as in Funimation's dubs of Dragon Ball, GT, Kai and the movies, and again in Dragon Ball Daima; Ted Cole also voiced him in the Ocean dub of Dragon Ball Z, recorded in Vancouver, and in the 1995 BLT dub of Dragon Ball.

Yamcha even has his own spin-off series, Dragon Ball Side Story: The Case of Being Reincarnated as Yamcha, drawn by Dragon Garow Lee.

Yamcha at a glance

Key fact Yamcha
Japanese name ヤムチャ Yamucha, from the Cantonese yum cha, “drink tea”
Companion Puar, an anthropomorphic cat
First appearance Chapter 7 of the manga, January 12, 1985; episode 5 of Dragon Ball, March 26, 1986
Teachers Master Roshi, Kami, King Kai
Techniques Wolf Fang Fist, Spirit Ball
Voices Tōru Furuya, then Ryōta Suzuki in Daima (Japanese); Christopher Sabat, plus Ted Cole in the Ocean dub (English)

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Who is Yamcha?
    He's a former desert bandit and Puar's companion who became Goku's friend, Bulma's boyfriend for years and Master Roshi's student.
  • How does Yamcha die?
    Against the Saiyans, a Saibaman he thought he'd beaten latches onto him and self-destructs (chapter 215). Yamcha is later brought back to life by Porunga. During the Buu Saga, he's also turned into chocolate and eaten, before being brought back to life once again.
  • Did Yamcha ever win a World Martial Arts Tournament?
    No. At the 21st, 22nd and 23rd tournaments, he's knocked out in the quarterfinals every time, by Jackie Chun, Tien Shinhan and then Shen.
  • When do Yamcha and Bulma break up?
    They break up for good during the three years before the androids arrive, while staying friends; Bulma then turns to Vegeta.
  • Does Yamcha play baseball?
    Yes, mostly in the anime: in Dragon Ball Z, he plays for the Taitans wearing number 00, and in episode 70 of Dragon Ball Super, he plays a game against Universe 6.
  • Who voices Yamcha?
    In Japanese, Tōru Furuya until 2024, then Ryōta Suzuki in Daima. In English, Christopher Sabat in Funimation's dubs of Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super, and again in Dragon Ball Daima; Ted Cole in the Ocean dub of Dragon Ball Z.

🍵 Yamcha's name comes from the Cantonese yum cha, “drink tea”; to drink your own tea, pick one of our Dragon Ball mugs.

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