# (1)Zero vs (7)Pikachu 2018 _source: (1)Zero vs (7)Pikachu 2018 (revid 84151)_ ## Ulti's Analysis So, uh... remember this match from way back in 2004? Hmm. Had this match happened one round earlier I probably would have dumped on Zero for not living up to the 1 seed line, but I think I've established my standard by now. If you're a 1 seed you have to at least make a divisional final unless you lose to a rally. Zero got lucky Pikachu wasn't a 4, 5, 8, or 9 seed, because he clearly would have gotten bodied by the little rat regardless of when this match happened. But it was a divisional final, so he at least gets to preserve his respect as a 1. I know I keep harping on this, but if you're not an NCAA fan you won't understand how much I respect the royalty of that number. By the time this match happened, we pretty much all knew a 55-45 type of beating was coming, not that it was easy to watch for us Zero fans but hey: Pikachu for whatever reason was the only Pokemon to show up this year, and outside of Detective Pikachu it's not like he had some crazy advantage. Charizard, Mewtwo, and Red are all in Smash and all looked killer in the past. Maybe Pikachu got some extra mascot love, I dunno, but he put an ass whuppin on Zero that the other three clearly weren't going to replicate this year. This wasn't really a match, either, given the crazy Pokemon board vote burying Zero immediately. It's worth noting here that the only time Zero has ever won a division was when Mega Man X helped carry him in the Rivalry Rumble. Zero himself always gets capped at this spot, and one wonders if he'll ever win a division on his own given this contest was a perfect opportunity for it. Pikachu's reward for winning? A very winnable spot, actually. We already covered the 2004 comparison, but this one isn't far off either: ## Safer777's Analysis Well the rat would win no problem here. Also funny enough he beat Yoshi with lower percentage than he did on Zero. Meaning Yoshi\>Zero? The stats don't lie! Some say that Pokemon have fallen but I don't believe it. I mean they are not insane like they were in the previous contest with the rallies and such but they are good. And Pikachu is damn strong. I am with the rat all the way myself! As for Zero he did as expected. Basically this match was as expected. So congrats to the rat. Oh and also Pikachu won a division for the 2nd time in a row! Save_us.rat indeed! The prediction percentage was good for Pikachu too. ## Tsunami's Analysis Division 2's final was a yawner, as while rallies may have been dead, PokéFEAR was still alive and well. But it was still worth something to look at. Pikachu won this match with 56.56% of the vote. Way back in 2004, despite theoretically having SFF on his side, Mega Man was only able to beat Zero with 56.01%. Granted, Zero's fared worse against Mega in two later fourway matches, culminating in Mega Man beating Charizard with Zero as an anchor after having previously lost to Weighted Companion Cube, but 2013 especially showed that SFF is magnified in multiways because the fans will abandon the lesser of the two characters to support the one with the better shot of winning. Last-Place Factor, we call it.