Garp vs. Mihawk: Who Is Stronger & Who Would Win in a Fight?

In terms of their comparison potential, One Piece definitely gives us an abundance of exceptionally intriguing characters whom we can easily compare in our articles, and that is exactly what we are going to do in this article as well. The two characters we are going to compare are Luffy’s grandfather and one of the most powerful Marines in the series, Monkey D. Garp, and the world’s greatest swordsman, Dracule Mihawk. Who is stronger and who would win in a fight? Keep reading to find out.

Due to his physical strength and resilience, Monkey D. Garp would be able to defeat Dracule Mihawk in a direct fight. There is no doubt that Mihawk is a much better swordsman than Garp and Garp himself is aware that he could to nothing against him in that category. But, Garp’s physical powers far surpass Mihawk’s and he is a better Haki user; on top of that, his endurance is so high that he would probably be able to power through Mihawk’s slashes and then use his monstrous strength to crush the swordsman to the ground, thereby winning the whole thing.

What follows, of course, is a detailed analysis of the answer we have given you above. We will portray Monkey D. Garp and Dracule Mihawk in more detail, giving you a thorough analysis of the issue at hand and the balance of power between the two characters using our usual formula. Through several categories, you will see who the stronger of the two is and why our answer is like it is, i.e., why we actually think that Garp would, indeed, be able to defeat Mihawk, despite the latter being the world’s greatest swordsman.

Physical abilities

Garp has extremely powerful fists. In fact, they are so powerful that even though Luffy was made of rubber, he managed to hurt him and make him feel extreme pain with just one strike. Also, even though Marco was in his Phoenix form throughout the War, Garp was still able to hurt him, which speaks for itself. He said that during the course of his training for Chinjao, he had effectively destroyed a total of eight mountains.

Garp also has remarkable durability, as evidenced by the fact that he was attacked by Captain Morgan and managed to withstand a cut from his ax. He has proven to be exceedingly quick, perhaps even faster than CP9’s agent Soru, as evidenced by the ease with which he breezed by every Straw Hat in order to wake Luffy in time.

Mihawk is the most powerful master swordsman in the entire planet thanks to his tremendous superhuman physical strength and his proficiency with the sword. A mountain of ice and battleships may both be easily destroyed by Mihawk’s instantaneously generated, extremely potent compressed air slashes or streams of energy, which have a tremendous range.

He also managed to halt Zoro, a powerful and ferocious swordsman, with just the knife he was holding in one hand. Mihawk has a strong jumping capacity and is incredibly nimble. He moves quickly enough to offset Luffy’s Gear Second’s increased speed. Also, he possesses quick reflexes.

It cannot be denied that Mihawk is powerful, but when compared to Garp’s raw strength, his superhuman abilities are simply not enough. Garp is a true monster in this category and only a few characters can really measure up to him (he was on the same level as the late Roger), so Garp wins this point clearly.

Points: Garp 1, Mihawk 0

Devil Fruit

Monkey D. Garp is actually one of the few characters with such a high level of power but no Devil Fruit abilities. In the end, we have nothing more to say about this category, at least when it comes to Monkey D. Garp, because he never consumed a Devil Fruit in his life, so there’s really not much to add here.

That also applies to Dracule Mihawk. Since Dracule Mihawk has achieved everything that he has achieved so far without a Devil Fruit (or without using his Devil Fruit abilities, but that is currently only a conspiracy theory), he falls into the same category as Garp in this aspect, and there is nothing to add here either.

We usually split the points in such categories, but we’re not going to that here. Namely, as this is not the first time that we’re dealing with a situation where neither character has anything to offer in a category, we already have a way of deciding on the points here, and that is – no one gets a point.

Points: Garp 1, Mihawk 0

Haki

Garp can utilize Haki because he is a Vice-Admiral and it is a prerequisite in that aspect, it seems. First of all, we can confirm that Garp is able to employ Observation Haki. Dr. Fishbonen advised Koby to ask Garp for help in learning Observation Haki as soon as he awoke because Garp is qualified to instruct others in it.

Garp regularly hurt Luffy despite having a rubber body, proving his skill with the Armament Haki. He also proved his mastery of Conqueror’s Haki in a recent encounter with Kuzan, placing him in a very exclusive club of characters who are capable of using all three varieties of Haki.

Mihawk can use at least two of the three types of Haki. Mihawk’s ability to easily keep up with Luffy while utilizing Gear Second demonstrates his command of Observation Haki. Like Zoro did when he faced Pica, he is capable to using Armament Haki. His proficiency in this area allows him to imbue his blades with Armament Haki, turning them into Black Blades that are noticeably stronger. He might possibly be able to employ Conqueror’s Haki, however it hasn’t been proven yet.

Sure, Mihawk might be able to use all thre types of Haki, but until that is officially confirmed, Garp definitely wins this category. Mihawk’s skills with Haki are truly amazing, but so are Garp’s, and the fact that he is able to use Conqueror’s Haki as well gives him the final advantage in this category.

Points: Garp 2, Mihawk 0

Weapons

Garp has so far been seen firing cannonballs (including a huge one) with just his hands, and that’s about it when it comes to him and weapons. He can assault with so many different tools that he can even use his fists as weapons. He is similar to his grandson Luffy in that he doesn’t use weapons in fight and that he nearly completely relies on physical power (and Haki). He is undoubtedly a better weapon user than Luffy, who is a terrible weapon user, but we don’t think he ranks among the best in the series.

Yoru, a black sword, is Mihawk’s primary weapon. Yoru is a single-edged, human-sized sword with a cross on the point. He only draws this sword when someone challenges him for his title and has the bravery or the strength to do so; otherwise, his Kogatana suffices.

He also wears a small cross-knife pendant around his neck. When combined with his swordsmanship abilities, it can be a deadly weapon that can defeat any swordsman of ordinary or lesser level, including Zoro, who used three swords in combat, and all of that despite the fact that he is shown using it as a tool for eating.

There is absolutely no doubt that Mihawk wins this final category, and that makes complete sense. First of all, there is no better weapons user than Mihawk in the whole series, and secondly, Garp sucks at using weapons, so it is more than obvious that Mihawk wins this one clearly.

Points: Garp 2, Mihawk 1

Garp’s durability would probably be the main aspect that would secure his victory, even against an opponent as skilled as Mihawk

The points give a slight advantage to Monkey D. Garp in this fight, and we can only agree with that in the end, as we agree with the conclusions from each category. Sure, there can be absolutely no doubt that Mihawk surpasses Garp in the final category, and their skills with the two Haki they both know is on a very similar level, but Garp has to important advantages.

One, Monkey D. Garp can use Conqueror’s Haki, and although its effects would probably be limited on Mihawk, as Mihawk is incredibly strong himself, this is something that, nevertheless, give an advantage to Garp.

Secondly, Garp’s endurance is absolutely amazing and we honestly think that it would be enough to power through Mihawk’s slashes and cuts. Sure, Garp would definitely take some damage in this battle, but in the end, he would be able to endure them and reach Mihawk, and as soon as he would do it, he would use his enormous strength to crush Mihawk to the ground and defeat him.