Who did Mirajane, Gildarts and Erza face off against to become a S-Class Mage? In the Tenrou Tree Arc, Gildarts told everyone who was moaning and groaning that he had to face the same thing as well when everyone was told that you had to face Erza and Mirajane which was...


  Fighting a S-Class Mage


So who was the S-Class mage that Mirajane, Gildarts, and Erza faced. Was it ever revealed in the manga or anime?
Looking at the past results on the S Class Mage Promotion Trial wiki, I would likely say that they had to fight the S-class mages present at that time (Eg: Erza had to fight either Laxus or Gildarts). It is not clear when and who Gildarts fought. It could have been Makarov, it could have been previous guild members or he could have shown his competence through other ways. It isn't really known how the previous tournaments went down. Remember that they don't have to win the fight to be promoted, like when Gildarts let Natsu continue the game or they might even get lucky like Gajeel. So the competition is not a power ranking.

Past Results

X???    Gildarts Clive
X778    Laxus Dreyar (Age 17)
X779    No Successful Candidate
X780    Erza Scarlet (Age 15)
X781    Mirajane Strauss (Age 16)
X782    Mystogan
X783    No Successful Candidate
X784    Trial Suspended