# 1966 in professional wrestling

1966 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling.

## List of notable promotions

Only one promotion held notable shows in 1966.
| Promotion Name | Abbreviation |
| Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre | EMLL |

## Calendar of notable shows

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| April | EMLL | 10. Aniversario de Arena México | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| September 2 | EMLL | EMLL 33rd Anniversary Show (1) | Mexico City, Mexico | Jerry London defeated Karloff Lagarde in a best two-out-of-three falls Lucha de Apuesta hair vs. hair match |
| September 30 | EMLL | EMLL 33rd Anniversary Show (2) | Mexico City, Mexico | René Guajardo defeated Jerry London in a best two-out-of-three falls Lucha de Apuesta hair vs. hair match |
| December 16 | EMLL | Juicio Final | Mexico City, Mexico | El Santo vs. Black Shadow in a singles match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

## Championship changes
### EMLL

NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship :
| incoming champion – Gory Guerrero |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 1 | Vacated | N/A | Guerrero left the promotion |
NWA World Middleweight Championship :
| incoming champion – René Guajardo |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 14 | Jerry London | EMLL show | |
| July 1 | René Guajardo | EMLL show | |
NWA World Welterweight Championship :
* incoming champion – Karloff Lagarde ||||
* No title changes ||||
Mexican National Heavyweight Championship :
| incoming champion - Chico Casaola |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| March 13 | Pantera Negra | EMLL show | |
| September 6 | Black Gordman | EMLL show | |
| November 2 | Polo Torres | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Middleweight Championship :
* incoming champion – El Santo ||||
* No title changes ||||
Mexican National Lightweight Championship :
| incoming champion – Alberto Muñoz |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 6 | Vacated | N/A | Championship vacated when Muñoz won the Mexican National Welterweight Championship |
| April 3 | Rolando Costa | EMLL show | |
| May 1 | Raul Rojas | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship :
| incoming champion – Alfonso Dantés |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 15 | Espanto I | EMLL show | |
| October 14 | El Santo | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Welterweight Championship :
| incoming champion – Huracán Ramírez |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 6 | Alberto Muñoz | EMLL show | |
Mexican National Tag Team Championship :
| incoming champion – Unknown |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| April 22 | Rayo de Jalisco and El Santo | EMLL show | Defeated Rene Guajardo and Karloff Lagarde in the final of a tournament |
Mexican National Women's Championship :
| incoming champion – Chabela Romero |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 12 | Jarocita Rivero | EMLL show | |
| August 11 | Chabelo Romero | EMLL show | |

### NWA

NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming Champion – Lou Thesz |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 7 | Gene Kiniski | NWA show | |

## Debuts

* Debut date uncertain:
** Leo Burke
** Tony St. Clair
* January 26 - André the Giant
* February 16 - Carlos Colón
* March 1 - Jumbo Miyamoto (All Japan Women)
* September 16 - Baron Von Raschke
* October 2 - Gran Cochisse
* October 12 - Haruka Eigen
* December - Bobby Duncum Sr.

## Births

* January 3 – Itzuki Yamazaki
* January 4 – La Parka II(died in 2020)
* January 12 – Tariel Bitsadze
* January 13 – Rockin' Rebel(died in 2018)
* January 20 – Haystacks Calhoun Jr.
* January 28 – Tim Patterson
* January 30 – Jeque
* January 31 – Giant González(died in 2010)
* February 10 –Chris Youngblood(died in 2021)
* March 8 – Ursula Hayden (died in 2022)
* March 11 – Robbie Brookside
* March 13 – Akira Nogami
* March 24 – Mitsuhiro Matsunaga
* April 4 – Ulf Herman
* April 6 – Tiffany Million
* April 18 – Todd Pettengill
* April 19 – El Samurai
* April 21 – Crybaby Waldo (died in 2020)
* April 23 – Bubba the Love Sponge
* May 9 – Brazo Cibernético(died in 1999)
* May 20 – Maniaco
* May 22:
** Scott Putski
** David Penzer
* May 26:
** Tinieblas Jr.
** Misterioso
* May 28 – Jerrito Estrada
* June 21:
** Mario Mancini
** Mancow Muller
* June 28 – Erik Paulson
* June 30 – Mike Tyson
* July 9:
** Tom Brandi
** Cannonball Grizzly
* July 10 – Johnny Grunge(died in 2006)
* July 16:
** Arkángel de la Muerte(died in 2018)
** Blue Demon Jr.
* July 22 – Shaun Simpson
* August 1 – Mike Chioda
* August 2 – Takashi Iizuka
* August 3 – Butterbean
* August 4 – Kensuke Sasaki
* August 7 – Asya
* August 8 – Miwa Sato
* August 19 – Lilian Garcia
* August 22 – Hardbody Harrison
* August 30 – Scott Stanford
* September 19 – Yoshihiro Takayama
* October 2 – Yokozuna(died in 2000)
* October 5 – Terri Runnels
* October 8 – Art Barr(died in 1994)
* October 21 – Chris Hamrick
* October 25 – Perry Saturn
* October 31 – Koji Kanemoto
* November 2 – Yoshinari Ogawa
* November 10 – Bill DeMott
* November 11 – Scorpio Jr.
* November 13 – Mike Anthony
* November 22 – Ed Ferrara
* November 26 – Brian Lee
* November 29 – John Bradshaw Layfield
* December 2 – Jinsei Shinzaki
* December 8
** Michael Cole
** Tyler Mane
* December 12 – Último Dragón
* December 15 – Chocoball Mukai
* December 16 – Mens Teioh
* December 18 – Espectrito(died in 2016)
* December 27:
** Bill Goldberg
** Jerry Tuite(died in 2003)

## Deaths

* March 17 – Don Eagle, 40
* March 30 – Sammy Stein, 60
* May 17 – Randolph Turpin, 37
* August 8 – Ed Lewis 75
* May 25 – Chris Zaharias 52
* August 1 – Jack Spellman, 67
* October 16 – Sándor Szabó 60
* November 10 – Ad Santel 79
* November 15 - Dimitrios Tofalos, 82