Legendary Pokemon player brings back his most infamous strategy for another massive tournament win: "I don't think I've ever lost a tournament with Perish"

A screenshot of Incineroar in the Pokemon anime.
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)

Legendary Pokemon video game championships player Wolfe "Wolfey" Glick has won yet another enormous tournament running the classic strategy that's now secured him wins at multiple other massive competitions – Perish Trap.

As the name suggests, Perish Trap relies on the move Perish Song, which on its own makes all Pokemon who've heard it (including its user) faint after three turns. This fate can be avoided if you just switch your affected Pokemon out, but there are ways to prevent this, such as the ability Shadow Tag. This deadly combination is exactly what Wolfey brought with him to the Pokemon Europe International Championships over the weekend, with a Scream Tail to sing and a Gothitelle with Shadow Tag to prevent his opponents' Pokemon from escaping.

Over the years, Perish Trap has become quite a signature move for Wolfey – if you saw any posts over the weekend chanting "Wolfey con Perish," uh, that's why. As VGC player @VelocityVGC points out, similar teams helped Wolfey secure wins at the Orlando Regionals in 2023 as well as the Toronto Regionals last year. In an interview after his win, it's suggested that Wolfey has "never lost a finals with Perish," to which he adds: "I don't think I've ever lost a tournament with Perish."

Even though they helped him get there, though, Wolfey didn't actually bring his Perish Trap duo to the grand finals yesterday. When going up against fellow finalist Dyl Yeomans, he used an Amoongus, Koraidon, Flutter Mane, and Incineroar (the latter of which also being a signature Pokemon of his).

Just in case this victory wasn't enough, Wolfey also revealed that he was secretly the one who won the recent Global Challenge I online competition earlier this month. Up to this point, the victor had been a complete mystery, but Wolfey's wins never stop, apparently. A screenshot posted to Twitter appears to confirm he used the exact same team that just won EUIC – we can't see their moves, but the lineup of Pokemon (even if slightly obscured) is clearly identical, indicating yet another success for Wolfey con Perish.

With Wolfey well and truly qualified for the Pokemon World Championships in Anaheim, California, this August, we'll just have to wait and see if this strategy comes back for a victory lap at the biggest competition of 2025. His last Worlds win was in 2016, and it's seeming more likely than ever that he might be able to secure a second title there this year.

Be sure to check out our ranking of the best Pokemon games for some of the best RPGs to play now.

Catherine Lewis
News Writer

I'm one of GamesRadar+'s news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

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