Summary

Whitebeard may have been stronger due to the destructive potential of his powerful Devil Fruit.
Roger and Whitebeard were equals, but Whitebeard's Devil Fruit may have given him an edge over his rival.
Rocks D. Xebec remains the strongest pirate ever, despite Roger and Whitebeard's prominence.

When it comes to the most powerful pirates in the history of One Piece, the names Gol D. Roger and Edward 'Whitebeard' Newgate are always the first that come to mind. The former was the only man who ever came to be known as the Pirate King and was renowned for his insane strength, and the latter was famous for the same thing but was also described as having the power to destroy the world.

In the previous era of One Piece, these two had a notorious rivalry and were always described as being at the same level of power as one another. This was shown as much in the battle they had during Oden's flashback in the Wano arc, where they fought to a stalemate after 3 days of non-stop battle. However, a rather large contingent of fans believe that Whitebeard was actually stronger, so let's see why this is.

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By Haider Haroon Rasheed

Why Whitebeard May Have Been Stronger Than Roger

The Truth About Their Rivalry

Roger's First Appearance	One Piece, Chapter 1, "Romance Dawn - The Dawn of Adventure"
Whitebeard's First Appearance	One Piece, Chapter 234, "Please Remember"

When it comes to talking about the strongest and most influential pirates in the setting, none can top Roger and Whitebeard. Although the former was the only one to ever hold the title of Pirate King, the latter never did so because it simply wasn't something that he was interested in. Their rivalry was just as iconic as they were, as they were stated to be equals who fought to a stalemate multiple times.

With the narrative outright calling these two legends equal, it just goes to show that neither of them was superior to the other. However, some fans believe that this isn't the whole truth behind it, since one simple detail reveals that Whitebeard was likely holding back against his rival. Although they have been said to have fought many times without either of them winning, only one of these engagements has ever been shown in the series, which was their battle during Oden's flashback in the Wano arc.

How many years has it been, Newgate?

Here, both characters and their crews fought non-stop for 3 days straight, with no clear winner being announced. The fight between these two showed their mastery of all the forms of Haki, since they only used this power, where it can be seen that their proficiency and overall strength with it are at the same level. However, the reason why many claim that Whitebeard may actually have been stronger out of the two is because he never used his Devil Fruit power in his fight with Roger.

Of course, even this statement is highly speculative since Oda has never shown any other fight between them. However, many fans take the one that has been seen as a sort of template for how the rest of their battles likely went, since the two didn't engage all that often. While their Haki was definitely equal, Whitebeard being the user of the most powerful Devil Fruit in the entire series would give him the edge over his rival.

Many believe that if the two weren't friends and fought by going all out, Whitebeard would have won simply because, although his Haki was equal to Roger's, his Devil Fruit power gives him destructive powers that can't be matched by anyone else in the series. During the Marineford War, Sengoku even said that Whitebeard was so strong that he could destroy the entire world if he wanted to, which very clearly implies that the power could have made a huge difference against Roger.

Even when he was sick and Haki wasn't as fleshed out of a concept as it is now, Whitebeard took on so much of the Navy just by himself during the Marineford War, showing that he's a one-man-army whose full strength could never be measured since he was nerfed due to his crew always being around him, preventing him from releasing the full destructive might of the Gura Gura no Mi Devil Fruit. Many even believe that if someone only has this Devil Fruit, they don't even need Haki.

Those in the opposite camp believe that Roger was slightly stronger, and the main reason they think this is how both characters dealt with Oden the first time they met, where Roger seemed to have way less trouble in dealing with him. However, many factors go into this, namely the fact that Roger's Divine Departure took Oden by surprise, still allowing him to get up after he was blown away. On the contrary, although Whitebeard's battle with Oden took considerably longer, a single punch blew Oden away and knocked him out once he got serious.

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By Haider Haroon Rasheed

The True Strongest Pirate Of All Time Is Still A Mystery

The Legend Who Roger Needed Help From Garp To Defeat

Although Roger and Whitebeard are remembered as the strongest of today, Rocks was likely more powerful than them both.

The general population of the world today remember Roger and Whitebeard as the strongest pirates of the old generation, and for the most part, this is true. However, the truth here is that the world only thinks this because the memory of the notorious Rocks D. Xebec has been erased, since this man was implied to be the most powerful pirate of all time after Joyboy himself.

Rocks remains mired in mystery and intrigue, but his power must have been legendary since he was the captain of the most powerful crew of all time, which included Whitebeard himself. Rocks was said to be so powerful that Roger and Garp had to work together to stop him, which is an incredible feat, since these two are remembered as some of the strongest characters in the setting. While the debate between Roger and Whitebeard's strength will always endure, the truth is that the one to hold the title of the strongest of their age was Rocks D. Xebec.

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