User blog comment:IamJakuhoRaikoben/Chapter 452: The Prelude to the Final Battle, Review./@comment-1153699-20150915213648/@comment-1153699-20150916104344

Laxus casually overpowered Azir. A normal Spriggan isn't enough for him. August was stated to be on a completely different level than the other Spriggans. Laxus is on a completely different level than characters like Base Natsu and Gray as well. Not to mention August easily blocked Laxus's casual nuke.

If Laxus doesn't take August, then I can see Jellal + some CS taking him instead. But Lucy?? How? Even if she does have something like Star Dress: CSK Form she still didn't improve as much as Natsu, Laxus or Gray did. She trained in her free time while Natsu for example trained all the time. And she's not a DS so she can't consume spirits and get stronger.