We've said it many times, and we'll say it again: One Piece offers an abundance of incredible characters that we can actually compare, and that's why we have so many comparisons we can make from this series. This article is going to be one of those comparisons, as we'll be pitting Monkey D. Garp, Luffy's grandfather and a famous Marine Vice Admiral, against Portgas D. Ace, Luffy's adopted brother and Garp's adopted grandson. Who is stronger? Keep reading to find out!

Garp was stronger than Ace and would win a fight against him. Before his death, Portgas D. Ace's power level was insufficient to defeat Garp at his peak. Ace was strong, certainly, but not strong enough to defeat Garp at that point, and since he died prematurely, we can't really guess if he would have surpassed the vice admiral. Based on Ace's progression, we assume it could have happened, but we can't confirm this because Garp is a true monster when he's at his best, so it would be a really tough matchup. But, as mentioned, Ace wasn't stronger than Monkey D. Garp at the time of his death.

What follows is, of course, a detailed analysis of the answer we gave you above. We will describe Monkey D. Garp and Portgas D. Ace in more detail, giving you an in-depth 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 is the stronger of the two and why our answer is the way it is, that is, why we are quite certain that Garp was even stronger than Ace at the time of the latter's untimely death in the series.

Physical abilities

Garp's fists are incredibly strong. In fact, they are so strong that they can injure Luffy and cause him pain with a single blow, even if Luffy was made of rubber. Garp was also able to injure Marco during the war even when the latter was in his Phoenix form. He stated that throughout his preparation for Chinjao, he managed to crush a total of eight mountains.

As demonstrated when he was attacked by Captain Morgan and survived a cut from his axe, Garp also possesses tremendous endurance and a remarkable tolerance for pain. He is also incredibly fast, perhaps even faster than CP9's Agent Soru, which he demonstrated when he simply outran all the Straw Hats to wake Luffy in time.

Ace was extraordinarily physically strong in addition to the abilities he gained from swallowing a Devil Fruit. His ability to sit on a large animal (possibly a bull) that he killed with his staff during his first encounter with Luffy and to defeat some neighborhood bullies who thought his father "deserved to die" when he was a child were indications of his high physical potential.

A later scene showed him easily descending a large tree. Ace fought Blackbeard and demonstrated his power. Ace received numerous blows from Blackbeard, two of which nearly broke his nose and caused him to bleed. Ace then fought back. Van Augur claimed that Ace was a formidable fighter even without his Devil Fruit skills.

It cannot be denied that Ace was physically strong and, despite his thin physique, was capable of displaying impressive strength in this aspect, but he was not – at the time of his death – even close to Garp's level, as Garp is a monster in this category. It is likely that, despite his growth, Ace would never have surpassed Garp in this category.

Points: Garp 1, Ace 0

Devil Fruit

Monkey D. Garp is one of a small number of characters who have managed to become truly powerful despite never having consumed a Devil Fruit in their lives. Since Monkey D. Garp has never consumed a Devil Fruit, we can't tell you much in this category, at least not as far as Monkey D. Garp is concerned.

After consuming the Mera Mera no Mi, Ace gained pyrogenic abilities, a Logia-type Devil Fruit. Ace demonstrated his incredible power by quickly annihilating numerous Baroque Works ships. He also stopped the snowfall on Drum Island the previous night using this power. Ace takes expert care of his Devil Fruit.

Even though he was made of fire, Akainu's strength managed to inflict a fatal wound on him while his Logia powers were still alive. Therefore, his composition did not protect him from attacks. This is due to Ace's Devil Fruit being weak compared to Akainu's strength. After his death, it was revealed that Ace's "Burning Fists" had the power to incinerate entire cities.

Even though Garp could probably counter Ace's Devil Fruit powers with his brute strength, we have to give this point to Ace, as per our usual procedure in such cases, because Garp doesn't have a Devil Fruit, unlike Ace.

Points: Garp 1, Ace 1

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RIGHT

Garp can use Haki because he's a Vice Admiral, and that's a prerequisite for this. We can first confirm that Garp is capable of using Observation Haki. Dr. Fishbonen urged Koby to ask Garp for help in studying Observation Haki as soon as he wakes up, as Garp is skilled enough to teach it to others.

Despite his rubber body, Garp frequently injured Luffy, demonstrating his mastery of Armament Haki. In a recent battle with Kuzan, he also demonstrated his mastery of Conqueror's Haki, placing him in a very elite group of characters capable of using all three types of Haki.

The fact that Ace has the inherent ability to use Conqueror's Haki is revealed in a flashback that takes place ten years before the present timeline, though it is not mentioned in the story itself. He actually used it against Bluejam without being aware of it. One Piece Magazine has reported that Ace can also use Armament Haki. His level of mastery of this type of Haki is unknown, however. In the manga adaptation of a light novel, Ace trained alongside Thatch to learn how to use Kenbunshoku Haki.

Okay, we're going to stray from our usual formula here, as we usually split points in cases where both characters knew the same Haki types, but it's quite obvious that Ace's Haki mastery wasn't even close to Garp's at the moment of death. He probably would have surpassed him in the future, but from this perspective, that's pure conjecture, and that's why Garp wins this point.

Points: Garp 2, Ace 1

Weapons

So far, Garp has been observed firing cannonballs (including a gigantic one) with his bare hands. He can even use his fists as weapons, demonstrating the extent of his offensive capabilities. Since he doesn't use weapons in combat, he is comparable to his grandson, Luffy, and he also relies almost exclusively on his physical strength (and Haki). We don't think he's among the greatest weapon users in the series, though he's certainly a better weapon user than Luffy, who is a formidable weapon user.

Although Ace has a knife, we never see him use it. However, Ace demonstrates his skill with various weapons in the flashback scenes where he attempts to kill Whitebeard, including an axe, a dagger, and more. In Luffy's flashbacks, he is depicted as having a pipe as a weapon.

This was difficult to analyze, as neither character is the strongest weapon user in the series; Garp relied on his brute strength, while Ace relied on his Devil Fruit. However, given how much Garp's strength surpasses Ace's, we assume he would have fared better in a weapon fight.

Points: Garp 3, Ace 1

Ace's untimely death made it impossible to predict whether he would have surpassed Garp in the future.

The points confirm this, as we said, and we can only agree here that we really believe that when Ace died, Garp was still significantly stronger than him. Garp's powers were revealed a little later, but he could do everything he did against Kuzan at the time of Ace's death, which says a lot.

Unfortunately, Ace's untimely death came as a shock, making it impossible for us to predict whether Ace would have been able to surpass Garp's power level at any point. We believe there was a chance for that, but given how Ace died, we'll never be able to truly prove it, and it will remain a mystery because of which we simply had no choice but to declare Garp the winner here.