Conquering Team GO Rocket Leaders in Pokémon GO: A January 2025 Guide
Whether you're a seasoned trainer or just starting your Pokémon GO journey, defeating Team GO Rocket Leaders—Sierra, Arlo, and Cliff—is crucial for research tasks and acquiring powerful Shadow Pokémon. Their constantly shifting lineups and formidable Shadow Pokémon make each encounter a challenge. This guide provides the intel you need to triumph.
Locating Team GO Rocket Leaders
Unlike Grunts, Leaders aren't easily found. You must first defeat six Grunts to obtain six Mysterious Components, which combine to create a Rocket Radar. Grunts appear randomly at PokéStops, and a hot air balloon containing a Grunt spawns every six hours, following you for 20 minutes. Once you have a Rocket Radar, Leaders replace Grunts at darkened PokéStops and in hot air balloons.
Sierra's January 2025 Team & Counters
Sierra's January 2025 team presents a diverse challenge:
| First Pokémon | Second Pokémon | Third Pokémon |
|---|---|---|
 Skorupi Bug/Poison |  Sableye Dark/Ghost |  Houndoom Dark/Fire |
 Steelix Ground/Steel |  Nidoqueen Ground/Poison | |
 Milotic Water |  Gardevoir Fairy/Psychic |
Effective counters include:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Terrakion | Smack Down Rock Slide |
 Gengar | Shadow Claw Shadow Ball |
 Excadrill | Metal Claw Iron Head |
Arlo's January 2025 Team & Counters
Arlo's January 2025 team:
| First Pokémon | Second Pokémon | Third Pokémon |
|---|---|---|
 Alolan Grimer Poison/Dark |  Hypno Psychic |  Metagross Psychic/Steel |
 Charizard Flying/Fire |  Scizor Bug/Steel | |
 Gyarados Flying/Water |  Snorlax Normal |
Prepare for Flying, Psychic, and Poison types. Top counters include:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Tyranitar | Bite Brutal Swing |
 Blaziken | Fire Spin Blast Burn |
Excadrill | Mud Slap Drill Run |
Cliff's January 2025 Team & Counters
Cliff's January 2025 team:
| First Pokémon | Second Pokémon | Third Pokémon |
|---|---|---|
 Cubone Ground |  Venusaur Grass/Poison | Tyranitar Dark/Rock |
 Marowak Ground |  Obstagoon Dark/Normal | |
 Aerodactyl Flying/Rock |  Crobat Flying/Poison |
Expect at least one Ground type and potentially Flying and Poison types. Use these counters:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Mamoswine | Powder Snow Avalanche |
 Lucario | Force Palm Aura Sphere |
Blaziken | Counter Blast Burn |
This guide will be updated as Team GO Rocket Leader lineups change. Good luck, trainers! Pokémon GO is available now on mobile devices. Last updated 1/14/2025.
