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Conquering Team GO Rocket Leaders in Pokémon GO: A January 2025 Guide
Tracking down and defeating Pokémon GO's Team GO Rocket Leaders – Sierra, Arlo, and Cliff – is crucial for research tasks and acquiring powerful Shadow Pokémon. Their boosted Shadow Pokémon and ever-shifting teams make preparation essential. This guide provides the information you need to effectively counter each leader's January 2025 lineup.
Locating Team GO Rocket Leaders
Unlike Grunts, Leaders require strategic effort to find. Defeating six Grunts yields 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 cunning strategy utilizes a diverse team. Expect Dark, Psychic, and Bug/Poison types.
| 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 team presents a varied challenge. Prepare for Flying, Psychic, and Poison types.
| 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) |
Recommended counters:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Tyranitar | Bite, Brutal Swing |
 Blaziken | Fire Spin, Blast Burn |
| Excadrill | Mud Slap, Drill Run |
Cliff's January 2025 Team & Counters
Cliff's formidable team includes several Dark-types, along with Ground, Flying, and Poison possibilities.
| 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) |
Top 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. Pokémon GO is available on mobile devices. Last updated 1/14/2025.
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