# 1978 in professional wrestling

1978 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling.

## List of notable promotions

These promotions held notable shows in 1978.
| Promotion Name | Abbreviation |
| All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling | AJW |
| Championship Wrestling from Florida | CWF |
| Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre | EMLL |
| National Wrestling Alliance | NWA |
| World Wide Wrestling Federation | WWWF |

## Calendar of notable shows

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| January 25 | UWA | 3rd Anniversary Show | Naucalpan | Mil Máscaras (c) defeated Temojin el Mongol during a 2-out-of-3 Falls Match for the UWA World Heavyweight Championship |
| January 25 | NWA WWWF CWF | Superbowl of Wrestling | Miami, Florida | "Superstar" Billy Graham (c - WWWF World Championship) vs. Harley Race (c - NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship) ended in a 60-minute time limit draw during a three fall match |
| February 23 | NWA WWWF CWF | NWA/WWWF World Title Unification | Jacksonville, Florida | Bob Backlund (c - WWWF World Championship) vs. Harley Race (c - NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship) ended in a 60-minute time limit draw |
| April 7 | AJPW | Champion Carnival | | Giant Baba defeated Abdullah the Butcher by count-out |
| April 21 | EMLL | 22. Aniversario de Arena México | Mexico City, Mexico | El Faraón and Ringo Mendoza defeated Alfonso Dantés and Sangre Chicana in a Lucha de Apuestas hair vs. hair match |
| May 30 | NJPW | MSG League | Tokyo, Japan | Antonio Inoki defeated André the Giant by count-out |
| September 22 | EMLL | EMLL 45th Anniversary Show | Mexico City, Mexico | Sangre Chicana and Rubí Rubalcava defeated El Cobarde and Dragón Rojo in a Lucha de Apuestas hair and mask vs. hair and hair match |
| October 29 | NWA WWWF CWF | NWA/WWWF World Title Unification | Orlando, Florida | Bob Backlund (c - WWWF World Championship) vs. Harley Race (c - NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship) ended in a draw |
| December 8 | EMLL | Juicio Final | Mexico City, Mexico | Kung Fu defeated El Idolo in a Lucha de Apuestas, mask vs. mask match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

## Notable events

* February 20 - Bob Backlund pinned Superstar Billy Graham at New York's Madison Square Garden to become the new World Wide Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Champion.
* March 14 - on WWF Championship Wrestling, Dominic DeNucci and Dino Bravo beat Mr. Fuji and Professor Tanaka to become the new World Wide Federation Tag Team Champions.
* June 26 - At New York's Madison Square Garden, The Yukon Lumberjacks beat Dominic DeNucci and Dino Bravo to become the new World Wide Federation Tag Team Champions.
* November 21 - Tony Garea and Larry Zbyszko beat the Yukon Lumberjacks to become the new World Wide Wrestling Federation Tag Team Champions.

## Accomplishments and tournaments
### AJW

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won | Notes |
| Rookie of the Year Decision Tournament | Hiroko Komine | | |

## Awards and honors
### Pro Wrestling Illustrated

| Category | Winner |
| PWI Wrestler of the Year | Dusty Rhodes |
| PWI Tag Team of the Year | Ricky Steamboat and Paul Jones |
| PWI Match of the Year | Superstar Billy Graham vs. Bob Backlund |
| PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year | Dusty Rhodes |
| PWI Most Hated Wrestler of the Year | Ric Flair |
| PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year | Dino Bravo |
| PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year | Blackjack Mulligan |
| PWI Rookie of the Year | Tommy Rich |
| PWI Manager of the Year | Arnold Skaaland |

## Championship changes
### EMLL

NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship :
| incoming champion – Alfonso Dantés |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| June 2 | El Faraón | EMLL show | |
| December 8 | Pak Choo | EMLL show | |
NWA World Middleweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – El Faraón |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 17 | Ringo Mendoza | EMLL show | |
| April 9 | Perro Aguayo | EMLL show | |
| June 23 | Ringo Mendoza | EMLL show | |
| August 13 | Tony Salazar | EMLL show | |
NWA World Welterweight Championship :
* Incoming champion – Mano Negra ||||
* No title changes ||||
Mexican National Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Raul Mata |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| July 1 | El Nazi | EMLL show | |
| October 27 | TNT | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Middleweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Vacant |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| No title changes |||||
Mexican National Lightweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Mario Valenzuela |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| August 30 | Talisman | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Dr. Wagner |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 15 | El Canek | EMLL show | |
| June 20 | Dos Caras | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Welterweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Kung Fu |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 7 | Americo Rocca | EMLL show | |
| June 20 | Lizmark | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Women's Championship :
* Incoming champion – Uncertain ||||
* No title changes ||||

### NWA

NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship :
* Incoming champion – Harley Race ||||
* No title changes ||||

## Births

* January 10 – Tamina
* January 20 - Joy Giovanni
* January 25 - B. J. Whitmer
* January 28 – Sheamus
* February 2 - Abraham Washington
* February 17 - Shiori Asahi
* March 1 - D. J. Hyde
* March 6 - Chad Wicks
* March 14 - Kaori Nakayama
* March 30 – Crazy Boy
* April 7 - Mana the Polynesian Warrior
* April 13 – SeXXXy Eddy
* April 16 – Austin Aries
* April 22 – Ezekiel Jackson
* May 15 - Keith Walker
* May 16 - Justice Pain (died in 2020)
* May 18 - Toru Yano
* May 22 - Daniel Rodimer
* May 24 – Elijah Burke
* June 2 – Joe Líder
* June 6 – ODB
* June 8 – Maria Menounos
* June 19 - Tyson Dux
* June 20 - Quinton Jackson
* June 24 – Adam Pearce
* July 17:
** Akira Raijin
** Mike Knox
* July 21 - Beer City Bruiser
* August 15 - Ruckus
* August 21 - Ricky Reyes
* August 27 - Kafu
* August 28 – Linda Miles
* September 8 - Rebel
* September 24 – Christopher Nowinski
* September 30 – Candice Michelle
* October 9 - Brian Hebner
* October 15 – Takeshi Morishima
* October 18 - Jaime Koeppe
* October 26 – CM Punk
* November 1 - Tyler Reks
* November 6 - Johnny Kashmere
* November 12 - Lena Yada
* November 21:
** Mini Abismo Negro
** Choun Shiryu
* November 28 - Brent Albright
* December 13 - Antonio Thomas
* December 20 - Armando Estrada
* December 23 – Nanae Takahashi

## Debuts
### Debut Date

* June 2 - Chino Sato (All Japan Women's)*
* June 23 - Ashura Hara
* August 21 - Devil Masami
* August 26 - Hiro Saito
* August 31 - Terry Daniels
* December 2 - Jumbo Hori (All Japan Women's)
* December 6 - Matt Borne

### Date Unknown

* Chicky Starr
* Kamala
* Koko B. Ware
* Jim Neidhart
* Buzz Sawyer
* Hugo Savinovich
* Rocco Rock
* Johnny Grunge
* Stan Lane
* Mimi Hagiwara (All Japan Women's)

## Retirements

* Arnold Skaaland (1946–1978)

## Deaths

* March 27 - John Pesek, 84
* June 30 – Michel Martel, 33
* August 13 – Lonnie Mayne, 33
* November 15 - Willie Gilzenberg, 77
* November 16 – Eric the Red, 44
* December 12 - Mike Thomas Farhat, 27
* December 20 - Robin Reed, 79