# 1996 in professional wrestling

1996 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling.

## List of notable promotions

These promotions held notable events in 1996.
| Promotion Name | Abbreviation | Notes |
| Catch Wrestling Association | CWA | |
| Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre | CMLL | |
| Extreme Championship Wrestling | ECW | |
| Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling | FMW | |
| Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide | AAA | The "AAA" abbreviation has been used since the mid-1990s and had previously stood for the promotion's original name Asistencia Asesoría y Administración. |
| New Japan Pro-Wrestling | NJPW | |
| World Championship Wrestling | WCW | |
| World Wrestling Council | WWC | |
| World Wrestling Federation | WWF | |

## Calendar of notable shows
### January

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| January 4 | NJPW | Wrestling World 1996 | Tokyo, Japan | Nobuhiko Takada defeated Keiji Mutoh (c) in a Singles match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship |
| January 5 | ECW | House Party | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | The Public Enemy (Johnny Grunge and Rocco Rock) defeated The Gangstas (Mustafa Saed and New Jack) in a tag team street fight |
| January 21 | WWF | Royal Rumble | Fresno, California, United States | The Undertaker defeated Bret Hart (c) by disqualification in a Singles match for the WWF Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### February

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| February 3 | ECW | Big Apple Blizzard Blast | Queens, New York, United States | 2 Cold Scorpio and the Sandman defeated the Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) by pinfall in a tag team match |
| February 3 | N/A | First Annual Eddie Gilbert Memorial Show | Cherry Hill, New Jersey, United States | Dan Severn (c) defeated Al Snow in a Singles match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship |
| February 11 | WCW | SuperBrawl VI | St. Petersburg, Florida, United States | Hulk Hogan defeated The Giant in a Steel Cage match |
| February 17 | ECW | CyberSlam | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Raven (c) defeated The Sandman in a Singles match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship |
| February 18 | WWF | In Your House 6 | Louisville, Kentucky, United States | Bret Hart (c) defeated Diesel by escaping the cage in a Steel Cage match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship |
| February 23-March 1 | CMLL | La Copa Junior Tournament | Mexico City, Mexico | La Fiera defeated Scorpió Jr. in a 1996 La Copa Junior first round match |
| February 23 | ECW | Just Another Night | Glenolden, Pennsylvania, United States | Raven (c) defeated Shane Douglas by pinfall in a Singles match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### March

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| March 8 | ECW | Big Ass Extreme Bash | Queens, New York, United States | Night 1: Raven (c) defeated The Sandman by pinfall in a Singles match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship Night 2: The Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) defeated The Headhunters (Headhunter A and Headhunter B) and 2 Cold Scorpio and the Sandman by pinfall in a three-way tag team elimination match |
| March 22 | CMLL | Homenaje a Salvador Lutteroth | Mexico City, Mexico | Rambo defeated El Brazo in a Best two-out-of-three falls Lucha de Apuestas, Hair vs. Hair match |
| March 24 | WCW | Uncensored | Tupelo, Mississippi, United States | Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage defeated Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Meng, The Barbarian, Lex Luger, The Taskmaster, Z-Gangsta and The Ultimate Solution via Pinfall in a Doomsday Cage match |
| March 31 | WWF | WrestleMania XII | Anaheim, California, United States | Shawn Michaels defeated Bret Hart (c) 1–0 in sudden death overtime in a 60-minute Iron Man match for the WWF Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### April

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| April 4 | FMW | Yamato Nadeshiko III | Osaka, Japan | Chigusa Nagayo and Combat Toyoda defeated KAORU and Megumi Kudo in a tag team match |
| April 13 | ECW | Massacre On Queens Boulevard | Queens, New York, United States | The Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) defeated the Headhunters (Headhunter A and Headhunter B) and 2 Cold Scorpio and The Sandman by pinfall in a Three-way tag team elimination match for the number one contendership to the ECW World Tag Team Championship |
| April 19 | CMLL | 40. Aniversario de Arena México | Mexico City, Mexico | Rayo de Jalisco Jr., Mil Máscaras and Tinieblas defeated Dr. Wagner Jr., Canek and Emilio Charles Jr. in a Six-man "Lucha Libre rules" tag team match |
| April 20 | ECW | Hostile City Showdown | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Raven (c) defeated Shane Douglas in a Singles match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship |
| April 28 | WWF | In Your House 7: Good Friends, Better Enemies | Omaha, Nebraska, United States | Shawn Michaels (c) defeated Diesel in a No Holds Barred match for the WWF Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### May

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| May 5 | FMW | FMW 7th Anniversary Show | Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan | Mr. Pogo and Terry Funk defeated Hayabusa and Masato Tanaka in a One Million Yen No Ropes Exploding Barbed Wire Double Hell Exploding Deathmatch |
| May 11 | AAA | Triplemanía IV-A | Chicago, Illinois, United States | Konnan and Perro Aguayo defeated Pierroth Jr. and Cien Caras in a Lumberjack match |
| May 11 | ECW | A Matter of Respect | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Tommy Dreamer and the Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) defeated Brian Lee and The Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn) by pinfall in a Six-man tag team match |
| May 19 | WCW | Slamboree | Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States | The Giant (c) defeated Sting in a Singles match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship |
| May 26 May 28 | WWF | In Your House 8: Beware of Dog | Florence, South Carolina, United States North Charleston, South Carolina, United States | May 26: Shawn Michaels (c) vs. The British Bulldog ended in a no contest in a Singles match for the WWF Championship May 28: Goldust (c) defeated The Undertaker in a Casket match for the WWF Intercontinental Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### June

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| June 1 | NJPW CMLL NWA WCW Michinoku Pro AAA AJWW | World Wrestling Peace Festival | Los Angeles, California, United States | Antonio Inoki (NJPW) and Dan Severn (NWA) defeated Yoshiaki Fujiwara and Oleg Taktarov in a tag team match |
| June 1 | ECW | Fight the Power | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | The Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn) (c) defeated the Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) by pinfall in a tag team match for the ECW World Tag Team Championship |
| June 7 | N/A | First Annual Ilio DiPaolo Memorial Show | Buffalo, New York, United States | The Giant (c) defeated Sting by disqualification in a Singles match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship |
| June 7 | CMLL | Torneo Gran Alternativa | Mexico City, Mexico | Chicago Express and Bestia Salvaje defeated Atlantico and Atlantis in a tournament final match |
| June 15 | AAA | Triplemanía IV-B | Orizaba, Veracruz, Mexico | La Parka, Octagón, and Máscara Sagrada defeated Killer, Cien Caras, and Heavy Metal in a Lumberjack match |
| June 16 | WCW | The Great American Bash | Baltimore, Maryland, United States | The Giant (c) defeated Lex Luger in a Singles match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship |
| June 22 | ECW | Hardcore Heaven | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Sabu defeated Rob Van Dam in a Singles match |
| June 23 | WWF | King of the Ring | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States | Shawn Michaels (c) defeated The British Bulldog in a Singles match for the WWF Championship with Mr. Perfect as special outside enforcer |
| June 30 | N/A | First Annual Rikidozan Memorial Show | Yokohama, Japan | Genichiro Tenryu and Tatsumi Fujinami defeated Koki Kitihara and Riki Choshu when Tenryu pinned Kitihara in a tag team match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### July

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| July 5 | CMLL | International Gran Prix | Mexico City, Mexico | El Hijo del Santo defeated The Great Sasuke in a 1996 International Gran Prix final match |
| July 6 | CWA | Euro Catch Festival in Graz | Graz, Austria | Ludvig Borga (c) defeated August Smisl in Round 6 in a Singles match for the CWA World Heavyweight Championship |
| July 7 | WCW | Bash at the Beach | Daytona Beach, Florida, United States | The Outsiders (Kevin Nash and Scott Hall) and Hulk Hogan fought Randy Savage, Sting and Lex Luger to a no contest in a Six-man tag team match |
| July 13 | ECW | Heat Wave | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | The Sandman, Terry Gordy and Tommy Dreamer defeated Raven (c), Brian Lee and Stevie Richards in a Steel cage match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship |
| July 14 | WWC | WWC 23rd Aniversario | Caguas, Puerto Rico | Invader #2 and #3 defeated The Southern Posse (Rick Thames and Sonny Trout) by disqualification in a reverse decision in a tag team match |
| July 15 | AAA | Triplemanía IV-C | Madero, Tamaulipas, Mexico | Halcón Dorado Jr. lost to Karis la Momia Also in the match: Los Payasos (Coco Rojo, Coco Verde and Coco Amarillo) and Los Junior Atómicos (Máscara Sagrada Jr., Tinieblas Jr. and Blue Demon Jr.) |
| July 21 | WWF | In Your House 9: International Incident | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada | Camp Cornette (The British Bulldog, Owen Hart and Vader) defeated The People's Posse (Ahmed Johnson, Shawn Michaels and Sycho Sid) in a Six-man tag team match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### August

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| August 1 | FMW | Summer Spectacular | Tokyo, Japan | Terry Funk defeated Mr. Pogo via knockout in a No Ropes Exploding Barbed Wire Glass Crush Spider Net Double Hell Deathmatch |
| August 3 | ECW | The Doctor Is In | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Sabu defeated Rob Van Dam in a Stretcher match |
| August 6 | NJPW | G1 Climax | Tokyo, Japan | Riki Choshu defeated Masahiro Chono in the finals |
| August 10 | WCW | WCW Hog Wild | Sturgis, South Dakota, United States | Hollywood Hogan defeated The Giant (c) in a Singles match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship |
| August 18 | WWF | SummerSlam | Cleveland, Ohio, United States | Shawn Michaels (c) defeated Vader in a Singles match for the WWE Championship |
| August 23 | ECW | Requiem for a Pitbull | Reading, Pennsylvania, United States | Rob Van Dam defeated Tommy Dreamer by pinfall in a Singles match |
| August 24 | ECW | Natural Born Killaz | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | The Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) (c) defeated the Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn) by pinfall in a Steel cage weapons match for the ECW World Tag Team Championship |
| August 24 | WWF | Xperience | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Shawn Michaels (c) defeated Goldust in a Ladder match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### September

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| September 13 | ECW | Unlucky Lottery | Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, United States | Sabu defeated Rob Van Dam by pinfall in a Singles match |
| September 14 | ECW | When Worlds Collide | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Brian Lee and the Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn) defeated the Miracle Violence Connection (Steve Williams and Terry Gordy) and Tommy Dreamer by pinfall in a Six-man tag team match |
| September 15 | WCW | Fall Brawl | Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States | nWo (Hollywood Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash and nWo Sting) defeated Team WCW (Lex Luger, Ric Flair, Arn Anderson and Sting) in a WarGames match |
| September 20 September 27 | CMLL | CMLL 63rd Anniversary Show | Mexico City, Mexico | September 20: Rayo de Jalisco Jr. (c) defeated Gran Markus Jr. in a Best two-out-of-three falls match for the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship September 27: Emilio Charles Jr. defeated Silver King in a Best two-out-of-three falls Lucha de Apuestas hair vs. hair match |
| September 22 | WWF | In Your House 10: Mind Games | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Shawn Michaels (c) defeated Mankind by disqualification in a Singles match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### October

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| October 5 | ECW | Ultimate Jeopardy | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | The Sandman and Tommy Dreamer defeated Stevie Richards and Brian Lee by pinfall in an "Ultimate Jeopardy" tag team match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship |
| October 20 | WWF | In Your House 11: Buried Alive | Indianapolis, Indiana, United States | The Undertaker defeated Mankind in a Buried Alive match |
| October 26 | ECW | High Incident | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Tommy Dreamer defeated Brian Lee in a Scaffold match |
| October 27 | WCW | Halloween Havoc | Paradise, Nevada, United States | Hollywood Hogan (c) defeated Randy Savage in a Singles match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### November

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| November 15 | CMLL | Torneo Gran Alternativa | Mexico City, Mexico | Rey Bucanero and Emilio Charles Jr. defeated Héctor Garza and Mr. Niebla in a tournament final match |
| November 16 | ECW | November to Remember | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Terry Funk and Tommy Dreamer defeated Shane Douglas and Brian Lee in a tag team match |
| November 17 | WWF | Survivor Series | New York, New York, United States | Sycho Sid defeated Shawn Michaels (c) in a Singles match for the WWF Championship |
| November 24 | WCW | World War 3 | Norfolk, Virginia, United States | The Giant won by last eliminating Lex Luger in 60-Man World War 3 battle royal for a future WCW World Heavyweight Championship match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### December

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| December 7 | ECW | Holiday Hell | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | Raven defeated The Sandman (c) by pinfall in a Barbed wire match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship |
| December 11 | FMW | Year End Spectacular | Tokyo, Japan | Atsushi Onita, Mr. Pogo, Masato Tanaka and Tetsuhiro Kuroda defeated Funk Masters of Wrestling (Terry Funk, Hisakatsu Oya, Headhunter A and Headhunter B) in a Texas Tornado Street Fight Deathmatch |
| December 15 | WWF | In Your House 12: It's Time | West Palm Beach, Florida, United States | Sycho Sid (c) defeated Bret Hart in a Singles match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship |
| December 21 | CWA | Euro Catch Festival in Bremen | Bremen, Germany | Rambo defeated Ludvig Borga (c) in Round 12 in a Singles match for the CWA World Heavyweight Championship |
| December 29 | WCW | Starrcade | Nashville, Tennessee, United States | Roddy Piper defeated Hollywood Hogan by submission in a Singles match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

## Notable events
### Mass Transit Incident

The "Mass Transit incident" was an infamous event in professional wrestling that occurred at an Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) house show on November 23, 1996 at the Wonderland Ballroom in Revere, Massachusetts in the United States. It involved Eric Kulas (1979 – May 12, 2002), an aspiring professional wrestler using the ring name "Mass Transit", being bladed too deeply by New Jack of The Gangstas during a tag-team match. Two of Kulas' arteries were severed; he bled profusely and passed out, and needed to be escorted out of the arena with medical attention. Further controversy arose when it came to light that Kulas had lied to ECW owner and booker Paul Heyman about his age and professional wrestling training. The incident led to a future ECW pay-per-view being cancelled (until Heyman negotiated otherwise), a lawsuit from Kulas' family, and went down as one of the most notorious moments of lore in professional wrestling history.

### IWRG created

On January 1 – Mexican promoter Adolfo Moreno created the International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG) which held its debut show on this date in Arena Naucalpan.

### Formation of the nWo

In the main event of World Championship Wrestling (WCW)'s Bash at the Beach pay-per-view on July 7, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash (both of whom had recently defected to WCW from the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and been presented on-screen as "outsiders") indicated that they would enlist a mystery partner against the team of Randy Savage, Sting, and Lex Luger.
Their partner ended up being Hulk Hogan, who surprisingly attacked long-time Mega Powers partner Savage to conclude the match, thus turning heel for the first time in nearly two decades. In his post-match promo, Hogan indicated his decision to lead the villainous stable which he christened as the New World Order (nWo).
The nWo would be the main focus of WCW programming for the better part of the next three years and led to WCW Monday Nitro defeating WWF Monday Night Raw in the Monday Night War ratings battle for eighty-three consecutive weeks. These developments in WCW are often credited with ultimately pushing the WWF toward producing the "edgier" content which would become the hallmark of the Attitude Era.

## Accomplishments and tournaments
### AJW

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won |
| Japan Grand Prix 1996 | Aja Kong | August 30 |
| Rookie of the Year Decision Tournament | Momoe Nakanishi | |
| Tag League The Best 1996 | Manami Toyota and Rie Tamada | December 1 |

### AJPW

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won |
| Asunaro Cup 1996 | Tamon Honda | January 28 |
| Champion Carnival 1996 | Akira Taue | January 20 |
| World's Strongest Determination League 1996 | Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue | December 6 |

### Jd' Star

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won | Notes |
| Rookies Tournament | Yoko Takahashi | December 29 | |

### WCW

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won |
| Lord Of The Ring Tournament | Diamond Dallas Page | May 19 |
| World War 3 | The Giant | November 24 |
| WCW United States Championship Tournament | Eddie Guerrero | December 29 |
| WCW Women's Championship Tournament | Akira Hokuto | December 29 |

### WWF

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won |
| Royal Rumble | Shawn Michaels | January 21 |
| WWF Tag Team Championship Tournament | The Bodydonnas (Skip and Zip) | March 31 |
| Kuwait Cup | Ahmed Johnson | May 12 |
| King of the Ring | Stone Cold Steve Austin | June 23 |
| WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament | Marc Mero | September 23 |
| Middle East Cup | Bret Hart | December 2 |

#### WWF Hall of Fame

| Category | Inductee | Inducted by |
| Individual | "Baron" Mikel Scicluna | Gorilla Monsoon |
| Individual | "Captain" Lou Albano | Joe Franklin |
| Individual | Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka | Don Muraco |
| Individual | Johnny Rodz | Arnold Skaaland |
| Individual | Killer Kowalski | Hunter Hearst Helmsley |
| Individual | Pat Patterson | Bret Hart |
| Individual | Vincent J. McMahon | Shane McMahon |
| Group | The Valiant Brothers | Tony Garea |

#### Slammy Awards

| Poll | Results |
| Best Buns | Sunny |
| Best Slammin' Jammin' Entrance | Shawn Michaels |
| "Put A Fork in Him, He's Done" (Best Finisher) | Bret Hart – Sharpshooter |
| Crime of the Century | Vader's assault on WWF President Gorilla Monsoon |
| New Sensation of the Squared Circle | Ahmed Johnson |
| I'm Talking and I Can't Shut Up for Biggest Mouth | Jerry Lawler |
| Best Threads | Shawn Michaels |
| Blue Light Special for Worst Dresser | Jim Cornette |
| WWF's Greatest Hit | The Undertaker drags Diesel into the abyss |
| Minds Behind the Mayhem for Manager of the Year | Sunny |
| Lifetime Achievement Award | Freddie Blassie |
| Most Embarrassing Moment | Jerry Lawler kisses his own foot |
| Squared Circle Shocker | Shawn Michaels collapses (Owen Hart accepts the award for making Shawn collapse) |
| Master of Mat Mechanics | Shawn Michaels |
| Best Music Video | Bret Hart |
| US West Match of the Year | Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon in a ladder match from SummerSlam '95 |
| Which WWF World Heavyweight Champion, past or present, in attendance, is Hall of Fame bound? | Bret Hart |
| Leader of the New Generation | Shawn Michaels |

## Awards and honors
### Pro Wrestling Illustrated

| Category | Winner |
| PWI Wrestler of the Year | The Giant |
| PWI Tag Team of the Year | Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) |
| PWI Match of the Year | Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania XII) |
| PWI Feud of the Year | Eric Bischoff vs. Vince McMahon |
| PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year | Shawn Michaels |
| PWI Most Hated Wrestler of the Year | Hollywood Hogan |
| PWI Comeback of the Year | Sycho Sid |
| PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year | Ahmed Johnson |
| PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year | Jake Roberts |
| PWI Rookie of the Year | The Giant |
| PWI Lifetime Achievement | Danny Hodge |
| PWI Editor's Award | Sunny |

### Wrestling Observer Newsletter
#### Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame

| Category | Inductee |
| Individual | Abdullah the Butcher |
| Individual | Perro Aguayo |
| Individual | André the Giant |
| Individual | Bert Assirati |
| Individual | Giant Baba |
| Individual | Jim Barnett |
| Individual | Red Berry |
| Individual | The Destroyer |
| Individual | Freddie Blassie |
| Individual | Blue Demon |
| Individual | Nick Bockwinkel |
| Individual | Paul Boesch |
| Individual | Bobo Brazil |
| Individual | Jack Brisco |
| Individual | Bruiser Brody |
| Individual | Mildred Burke |
| Individual | El Canek |
| Individual | Negro Casas |
| Individual | Riki Choshu |
| Individual | Jim Cornette |
| Individual | The Crusher |
| Individual | Ted DiBiase |
| Individual | Dick the Bruiser |
| Individual | Alfonso Dantés |
| Individual | Dynamite Kid |
| Individual | Jackie Fargo |
| Individual | Ric Flair |
| Individual | Tatsumi Fujinami |
| Individual | Dory Funk |
| Individual | Dory Funk, Jr. |
| Individual | Terry Funk |
| Individual | Verne Gagne |
| Individual | Cavernario Galindo |
| Individual | Ed Don George |
| Individual | Gorgeous George |
| Individual | Frank Gotch |
| Individual | Karl Gotch |
| Individual | Billy Graham |
| Individual | Eddie Graham |
| Individual | René Guajardo |
| Individual | Gory Guerrero |
| Individual | Georg Hackenschmidt |
| Individual | Stan Hansen |
| Individual | Bret Hart |
| Individual | Stu Hart |
| Individual | Bobby Heenan |
| Individual | Danny Hodge |
| Individual | Hulk Hogan |
| Individual | Antonio Inoki |
| Individual | Rayo de Jalisco, Sr. |
| Individual | Tom Jenkins |
| Individual | Don Leo Jonathan |
| Individual | Gene Kiniski |
| Individual | Fred Kohler |
| Individual | Killer Kowalski |
| Individual | Ernie Ladd |
| Individual | Dick Lane |
| Individual | Jerry Lawler |
| Individual | Ed Lewis |
| Individual | Jim Londos |
| Individual | Salvador Lutteroth |
| Individual | Akira Maeda |
| Individual | Devil Masami |
| Individual | Mil Máscaras |
| Individual | Dump Matsumoto |
| Individual | Earl McCready |
| Individual | Leroy McGuirk |
| Individual | Vincent J. McMahon |
| Individual | Vincent K. McMahon |
| Individual | Danny McShain |
| Individual | Ray Mendoza |
| Individual | Toots Mondt |
| Individual | Sam Muchnick |
| Individual | Bronko Nagurski |
| Individual | Pat O'Connor |
| Individual | Kintarō Ōki |
| Individual | Atsushi Onita |
| Individual | Pat Patterson |
| Individual | Antonio Peña |
| Individual | John Pesek |
| Individual | Roddy Piper |
| Individual | Harley Race |
| Individual | Dusty Rhodes |
| Individual | Rikidōzan |
| Individual | Yvon Robert |
| Individual | Billy Robinson |
| Individual | Antonino Rocca |
| Individual | Buddy Rogers |
| Individual | Lance Russell |
| Individual | Bruno Sammartino |
| Individual | Billy Sandow |
| Individual | El Santo |
| Individual | Jackie Sato |
| Individual | Randy Savage |
| Individual | The Sheik |
| Individual | Hisashi Shinma |
| Individual | Dara Singh |
| Individual | Gordon Solie |
| Individual | El Solitario |
| Individual | Ricky Steamboat |
| Individual | Joe Stecher |
| Individual | Tony Stecher |
| Individual | Ray Steele |
| Individual | Ray Stevens |
| Individual | Nobuhiko Takada |
| Individual | Genichiro Tenryu |
| Individual | Lou Thesz |
| Individual | Satoru Sayama |
| Individual | Jumbo Tsuruta |
| Individual | Frank Tunney |
| Individual | Maurice Vachon |
| Individual | Big Van Vader |
| Individual | Johnny Valentine |
| Individual | Fritz Von Erich |
| Individual | Whipper Billy Watson |
| Individual | Bill Watts |
| Individual | Jaguar Yokota |
| Individual | Stanislaus Zbyszko |
| Group | The Dusek family |
| Group | The Fabulous Kangaroos (Al Costello, Roy Heffernan, and Don Kent) |
| Group | The Road Warriors (Hawk and Animal) |

#### Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

| Category | Winner |
| Wrestler of the Year | Kenta Kobashi |
| Most Outstanding | Rey Misterio Jr. |
| Feud of the Year | New World Order vs. World Championship Wrestling |
| Tag Team of the Year | Mitsuharu Misawa and Jun Akiyama |
| Most Improved | Diamond Dallas Page |
| Best on Interviews | Stone Cold Steve Austin |

## Title changes
### ECW

ECW World Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – The Sandman |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 27 | Raven | Live event | |
| October 5 | The Sandman | Ultimate Jeopardy | |
| December 7 | Raven | Holiday Hell | |
ECW World Television Championship :
| Incoming champion – Mikey Whipwreck |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 5 | 2 Cold Scorpio | House Party | |
| May 11 | Shane Douglas | A Matter of Respect | |
| June 1 | Pitbull #2 | Fight the Power | |
| June 22 | Chris Jericho | Hardcore Heaven | |
| July 13 | Shane Douglas | Heat Wave | |
ECW World Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Cactus Jack and Mikey Whipwreck |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 3 | The Eliminators (Kronus and Saturn) | Big Apple Blizzard Blast | |
| August 3 | The Gangstas (Mustafa and New Jack) | The Doctor Is In | |
| December 20 | The Eliminators (Kronus and Saturn) | Hardcore TV | |

### FMW

FMW Double Championship :
| Incoming champion – The Gladiator |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 5 | Vacant | FMW | |
| February 23 | Super Leather | FMW | |
| May 27 | The Gladiator | FMW | |
FMW Brass Knuckles Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Lethal Weapon (Hisakatsu Oya and Horace Boulder) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 5 | The Faces of Dead (Super Leather and Jason the Terrible) | FMW | |
| March 30 | The Headhunters (A and B) | FMW | |
FMW Independent World Junior Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Koji Nakagawa |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 5 | Taka Michinoku | 7th Anniversary Show | |
FMW Women's Championship :
| Incoming champion – Combat Toyoda |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 5 | Megumi Kudo | 7th Anniversary Show | |
FMW World Street Fight 6-Man Tag Team Championship :
| (Title created) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 5 | Puerto Rican Army (Super Leather, Headhunter A and Headhunter B) | 7th Anniversary Show | |
| June 28 | Masato Tanaka, Koji Nakagawa and Tetsuhiro Kuroda | FMW | |
| November 16 | Funk Masters of Wrestling (Hisakatsu Oya, Headhunter A and Headhunter B) | FMW | |

### IWRG

Distrito Federal Trios Championship :
| Incoming champions – Los Oficiales (Maniac Cop, Oficial and Virgilante) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| Uncertain | Los Super Payasos (Bruly, Circus and Rody) | IWRG Show | |
| December 14 | Judo Suwa, Shiima Nobunaga and Sumo Fuji | IWRG Show | |

### NJPW

IWGP Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Keiji Mutoh |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 4 | Nobuhiko Takada | Wrestling World 1996 | |
| April 29 | Shinya Hashimoto | Battle Formation | |
IWGP Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Junji Hirata and Shinya Hashimoto |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| June 12 | Kazuo Yamazaki and Takashi Iizuka | Best of the Super Jr. III | |
| July 16 | Cho-Ten (Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Masahiro Chono) | Summer Struggle 1996 | |
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Koji Kanemoto |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 4 | Jushin Thunder Liger | Wrestling World 1996 | |
| April 29 | The Great Sasuke | Battle Formation | |
| October 11 | Ultimo Dragon | Live event | |

### WCW

WCW World Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Ric Flair |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 22 | Randy Savage | Nitro | |
| February 11 | Ric Flair | SuperBrawl VI | |
| April 22 | The Giant | Nitro | |
| August 10 | Hollywood Hogan | Hog Wild | |
WCW Cruiserweight Championship :
| (Title created) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| March 20 | Shinjiro Otani | Hyper Battle 1996 | Defeated Wild Pegasus in tournament final to determine the new WCW Cruiserweight Champion. This was a New Japan Pro-Wrestling event. |
| May 2 | Dean Malenko | WorldWide | |
| July 8 | Rey Misterio, Jr. | Nitro | |
| October 27 | Dean Malenko | Halloween Havoc | |
| December 29 | Ultimate Dragon | Starrcade | |
WCW United States Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – One Man Gang |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 29 | Konnan | Nitro | |
| July 7 | Ric Flair | Bash at the Beach | |
| November 25 | Vacant | Nitro | Vacated due to Ric Flair suffering a shoulder injury |
| December 29 | Eddie Guerrero | Starrcade | Defeated Diamond Dallas Page in a tournament final |
WCW Women's Championship :
| (Title created) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| December 29 | Akira Hokuto | Starrcade | Defeated Madusa in a tournament final to become inaugural champion |
WCW World Television Championship :
| Incoming champion – Johnny B. Badd |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 17 | Lex Luger | House show | |
| February 18 | Johnny B. Badd | House show | |
| March 6 | Lex Luger | Saturday Night | |
| August 20 | Lord Steven Regal | Saturday Night | |
WCW World Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 22 | Sting and Lex Luger | Nitro | |
| June 24 | Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) | Nitro | |
| July 24 | The Steiner Brothers (Rick and Scott Steiner) | House show | |
| July 27 | Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) | House show | |
| September 23 | The Public Enemy (Johnny Grunge and Rocco Rock) | Nitro | |
| October 1 | Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) | Saturday Night | Aired on tape delay on October 5. |
| October 27 | The Outsiders (Kevin Nash and Scott Hall) | Halloween Havoc | |

### WWF

WWF World Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Bret Hart |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| March 31 | Shawn Michaels | WrestleMania XII | It was a 60-minute Iron Man match that went into sudden death with the score 0-0. |
| November 17 | Sycho Sid | Survivor Series | |
WWF Intercontinental Championship :
| Incoming champion – Razor Ramon |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 21 | Goldust | Royal Rumble | |
| April 1 | Vacant | Raw | Held up when a title defense against Savio Vega ended in a no contest |
| April 1 | Goldust | Raw | Defeated Savio Vega in a rematch for the vacant title |
| June 23 | Ahmed Johnson | King of the Ring | |
| August 12 | Vacant | Raw | Ahmed Johnson forfeited the title after being attacked by the debuting Faarooq after winning an 11-man battle royal |
| September 23 | Marc Mero | Raw | Defeated Faarooq in a tournament final |
| October 21 | Hunter Hearst Helmsley | Raw | |
WWF Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – The Smoking Gunns (Billy and Bart Gunn) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 15 | Vacated | House show | Vacated when Billy Gunn suffered a neck injury |
| March 31 | The Bodydonnas (Skip and Zip) | WrestleMania XII | Defeated The Godwinns in a tournament final |
| May 19 | The Godwinns (Henry O. and Phineas I. Godwinn) | House show | |
| May 26 | The Smoking Gunns (Billy and Bart Gunn) | In Your House 8: Beware of Dog | |
| September 22 | Owen Hart and The British Bulldog | In Your House 10: Mind Games | |
Million Dollar Championship :
| Incoming champion – The Ringmaster |||||
| unsanctioned championship |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 28 | Abandoned | N/A | |

## Debuts

* Uncertain debut date
** Mari Apache
** Miyuki Okada (SPWF)
** Rumi Sekiguchi (All Japan Women's)
** Yoshikazu Taru
* January 4 - Sayuri Okino (LLPW)
* March 10 – The Rock
* March 20 - Masakazu Fukuda
* April 14 - Aya Koyama (Jd' Star)
* April 23 - K-Ness
* April 29 - Rina Ishii (GAEA)
* May 2 – Sachie Abe
* May 16 - Adam Pearce
* July 14 - Momoe Nakanishi and Nanae Takahashi
* July 28 – Miho Wakizawa and Yachiyo Kawamoto (All Japan Women's)
* July 30 - Yuko Kosugi (Jd' Star)
* August 8 - H. C. Loc
* August 12 – Sakura Hirota
* September 15 - Fugofugo Yumeji
* September 16 - Miyuki Fujii (All Japan Women's)
* October 5 - Nobuyuki Kurashima
* October 17 - MIKAMI
* October 20 - Keiichi Kawano
* November 2 - Tomohiro Ishii
* November 24 - Miyuki Sogabe (Jd' Star)
* September 15 – Takashi Sasaki
* December 28 - Sari Osumi (JWP)

## Births

* February 22 – Rabbit Miu
* March 15 – Maxwell Jacob Friedman
* March 20 – Blair Davenport
* March 27 – Pom Harajuku
* May 7 – Mike D Vecchio
* May 11 – Laurance Roman
* June 2 – Jacy Jayne
* June 20 – Rhio
* July 30 – Marko Stunt
* August 17 – Indi Hartwell
* October 11 – Rhea Ripley
* October 23 – Taishi Ozawa

## Retirements

* Akio Sato (1970–1996)
* Billy Jack Haynes (1982–1996)
* Damian Kane (1980–1996)
* Tom Zenk (1986–October 1996)
* Tyler Mane (1986–1996)
* Dick Slater (1972–October 1996)
* Dynamite Kid (December 24, 1975 – October 10, 1996)
* Espanto Jr. (1971–January 1996)
* Jerry Stubbs (1970–1996, return to wrestle for a match in 2019)
* Mr. Fuji (1965–1996)
* Steve Regal (1977–1996)
* Wahoo McDaniel (1961–July 1996)
* Rocky Iaukea (1981–1996)
* Tom Lister, Jr. (1989–March 1996)
* Tiger Conway Jr. (1971–1996)

## Deaths

* January 23 - Art White, 80
* May 3 – Ray Stevens, 60
* June 15 – Dick Murdoch, 49
* June 26 - Octavio Gaona, 94
* July 20 - The Missouri Mauler, 65
* July 23 – Herb Abrams, 41
* August 23 - Neil Superior, 33
* September 11 – Sapphire, 61