This was easily predicted way back in Sun and Moon that this would happen in the next season or two. I’m not surprised whatsoever. The Pokemon Company is the most predictable company of all time.

They did this so they could end Ash’s story. The creators stated they’d never let Ash win a league unless it was the end of his journey. They think just because he won ONE league that makes him a “Pokemon Master”, so they’ll probably use this as an excuse to make a new MC for S&S or have an Ash 2.0.

The people behind the anime have actually responded to a question similar to yours before. They basically stated that if Ash became Champion, then what? They said that if he became champion the pokemon master there’d be nothing more to continue the series on, so they said if/when they plan to end the anime he’ll more…