Why is Hippowdon used more than Tyranitar all of a sudden?

Question

Tyranitar:
+Higher attack stat
+Gets even more special bulk thanks to sandstorm affecting rock types (as if its special defense wasn't good enough)
+Great movepool offensively
+One of the best users of dynamax thanks to weakness policy and its 7 weaknesses coupled with insane bulk while dynamaxed
-bad defensive typing (but that makes weakness policy even better)
-HP and defense is only slightly worse than hippowdon
But, it's in UU for some reason

Now, on to

Hippowdon
+Possesses a great offensive typing
+Slightly more physical bulk than t-tar
+Has reliable recovery, rocks, and whirlwind
-Awful special defense stat, plus it isn't even affected by sandstorms's sp.def boosts because its a ground type
-taunt fodder
-Its movefool is a shallow pit
But, its in OU

I personally do not see any reason to use Moto Moto over Tyranitar, and I dont see why they decided to ban it to UU either. So, why has Hippowdon been surging in usage while Tyranitar is being left in the dust?

Comments

Im going to guess it's because Hippowdon can absorb physical hits very well, plus it gets Slack Off for reliable recovery.

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Nothing ever gets "banned to UU". You can use any lower tier Pokemon in OU, including Tyranitar. It's just that not many other people are using Tyranitar in OU.

Answer 1

As you listed before, Hippowdon has better physical bulk than T-Tar, and it has less weaknesses. Weakness Policy isn't seen much on T-Tar, and as there is no dynamax in OU, Tyranitar isn't nearly as good. Hippowdons extra physical bulk and less weaknesses helps check more of the OU metagame. It also gets good recovery, which helps keep sand up for a longer period of the battle. While Hippowdon has a shallow movepool, it only really does one role. Hippowdon is just better at its role, unlike T-Tar, which can put up more offensive pressure, but isn't as good of a sand setter.

Hope this helped!