A lot of debate has gone on about the fight between Yoda and Sidious. In this blog I explain my visions on this fight.

Let's start out with the most obvious question: "Who won the fight?"
It seems to me that it is quite clear that Sidious won the fight. He won the fight because he accomplished his goals and Yoda didn't. Yoda wanted to kill Sidious and end his rule right where it started. Sidious just wanted to survive and continue to be the leader of the galaxy.

"Who was "winning" the fight.
I'd have to call it a draw. They were both suprised in the beginning of their fight and during the fight they seemed to cancel eachother out. Neither seemed to be dominating the other, only subjective reasoning will make it look like one of the fighters was "winning".

"Was Sidious trying to get away?"
He sure was, but it wasn't because he was afraid of Yoda. One could argue that Sidious tried to run and that he was constantly trying to keep his distance, but I think that were tactical considerations. If Sidious could prolong the fight long enough, his Clone troopers would have ended it for him. It seems to be a little un-Sith. But, he got to where he was by not being a typical Sith.

"Why did Yoda leave?"
It has been said that Yoda realized that the Sith had evolved and the Jedi hadn't. Unlike all the Sith in the past, Sidious actually thought about the larger picture. He didn't rush into anything, but he carefully planned and plotted until the time was right. Yoda finally realized this during their fight and it was right there that he decided to go into exile. He knew then he couldn't kill Sidious that day, Sidious held all the cards and was in complete control of himself. Yoda had just encountered the first Sith who thought everything over and controlled his passions enough to really use them to his advantage.Yoda needed time to rethink his strategy and philosophy. He said he failed and he was right, but he did make the right decision.

"Who is more powerful?"
The answer to that question lies in philosophy. They are both equally powerful. They are like YinYang, both complete opposites and fully the same. Yoda represents the ultimate light and Sidious represents the ultimate dark. Good and bad cancel eachother out. "The Chosen One" Lord Vader/Anakin Skywalker is the only exception. Fate has given him more potential than anybody else ever and is the only one who can tip the balance between light and dark. That's why he was able to turn from the Dark Side and that's why he has been prophesized by ancient Jedi. He is more than the ultimate light or dark, he is the Chosen One. Yoda and Sidious are "normal" and not able to do all that. They are equally powerful by definition.

May the Force be with you!

Note: I purposefully left the EU out of consideration when I wrote this Blog, so please don't refer to the EU to discuss any of the above. Although I really like the EU, the writers involved have often shown a blatant lack of understanding for the philosophical principles of Star Wars.