Star Wars: Is Obi-Wan Kenobi More Powerful Than Darth Vader?

Thus far, we've seen Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor/Alec Guinness) and his former apprentice Darth Vader (James Earl Jones) duel four separate times throughout "Star Wars" canon. Their first real battle came in the climactic final moments of "Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith," shortly after Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) had only just fallen to the dark side of the Force. Their second and third battles came during the events of the "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Disney+ series, and their final battle ended with Obi-Wan's death in "Star Wars: A New Hope." 

Though their rivalry eventually ended with Obi-Wan's death (albeit, a death that Obi-Wan willingly accepted without fighting back), debate has persisted online about whether or not Darth Vader was actually more powerful than his old master. This is mainly because Vader lost horrifically in their first and third battles. From the four battles we've witnessed thus far, it's fair to say that Darth Vader is actually stronger than his former master, but that his losses were the result of Obi-Wan's cunning and knowledge of Anakin's aggressive fighting style.

As the "Chosen One," Anakin Skywalker is often cited as one of the strongest fighters in the entire galaxy, but his reckless fighting style in "Revenge of the Sith" allows Obi-Wan to goad him into an opening and cut off both legs. Obi-Wan uses a similar method to defeat an older Darth Vader in "Obi-Wan Kenobi," using Vader's hubris to lure him to an isolated planet and manipulating that planet's natural rock formation to defeat Vader.

Although the series has made it clear that Obi-Wan will almost always defeat Darth Vader if the two come face to face, both the "Star Wars" prequel series and "Obi-Wan Kenobi" went out of their way to clarify which of the two was more powerful.

"Revenge of the Sith" in particular establishes early on that Anakin Skywalker is more powerful than his master, as Anakin is able to defeat Count Dooku (Chrisopher Lee) alone while Obi-Wan is knocked unconscious. On top of that, the duo's battle in "Obi-Wan Kenobi Part III" ends with perhaps the biggest beatdown of Obi-Wan's entire career as a Jedi. Where Obi-Wan's connection to the Force had grown weaker since Mustafar, Darth Vader's immersion in the Dark Side has transformed him into a one man army. Vader easily tracks down a fleeing Obi-Wan and effortlessly duels him with just one hand, each lazy swing nearly crushing the arm of his former master. After that Vader uses the Force to rake Obi-Wan over a field of flammable ore, promising that he will torture Obi-Wan even further after he is captured.

This particular battle is a helpful reminder of the power gap between Obi-Wan and a rage-fueled Darth Vader; the latter of whom has displayed even more incredible feats of strength, like pulling down a Starship mid-flight. Though Obi-Wan defeated Darth Vader with skill, there's no question that Vader still outmatches his old master in terms of sheer power.