# 2006 in professional wrestling

2006 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling.

## List of notable promotions

These promotions held notable events in 2006.
| Promotion Name | Abbreviation | Notes |
| Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre | CMLL | |
| Georgia Championship Wrestling | GCW | |
| Hustle | – | |
| 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 | |
| Pro Wrestling Guerrilla | PWG | |
| Ring of Honor | ROH | |
| Sal Corrente | – | |
| Total Nonstop Action Wrestling | TNA | |
| World Wrestling Council | WWC | |
| World Wrestling Entertainment | WWE | WWE divided its roster into two storyline divisions, Raw and SmackDown!, referred to as brands, where wrestlers exclusively performed on their respective weekly television programs. A third brand, ECW, was launched in June, a relaunch of the former Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion, which WWE had acquired in 2003. |

## Calendar of notable shows
### January

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 4 | NJPW | Toukon Shidou Chapter 1 | Tokyo, Japan | Brock Lesnar (c) defeated Shinsuke Nakamura in a Singles match to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Championship | |
| 8 | WWE: Raw | New Year's Revolution | Albany, New York | Edge defeated John Cena (c) for the WWE Championship when he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase | |
| 15 | TNA | Final Resolution | Orlando | Christian Cage and Sting defeated Jeff Jarrett and Monty Brown in a Tag team match | This event was Sting's debut in TNA |
| 29 | WWE: Raw SmackDown! | Royal Rumble | Miami, Florida | Kurt Angle (c) defeated Mark Henry in a Singles match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship | Rey Mysterio won the Royal Rumble match and chose to challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 22 |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### February

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 12 | TNA | Against All Odds | Orlando | Christian Cage defeated Jeff Jarrett (c) in a Singles match to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship | |
| 19 | WWE: SmackDown! | No Way Out | Baltimore, Maryland | Kurt Angle (c) defeated The Undertaker in a Singles match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship | Rey Mysterio lost his WrestleMania 22 World Heavyweight Championship opportunity to Randy Orton, but still ended up being in the championship match at WrestleMania |
| 25 | ROH | Fourth Anniversary Show | Edison, New Jersey | Generation Next (Austin Aries & Roderick Strong) (c) defeated A.J. Styles & Matt Sydal to retain ROH Tag Team Championship | |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### March

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| 4 | WWE: SmackDown! | WWE SmackDown Road to WrestleMania 22 Tour | Wellington, New Zealand | Kurt Angle (c) defeated Mark Henry and The Undertaker by disqualification in a Triple Threat match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship |
| 5 | Sal Corrente | World Wrestling Legends | Orlando, Florida | Scott Steiner defeated Buff Bagwell in a Singles match |
| 10 | AAA | Rey de Reyes | Ciudad Madero, Mexico | Elimination match for the 2006 Rey de Reyes trophy |
| 12 | TNA | Destination X | Orlando | Christian Cage (c) defeated Monty Brown in a Singles match to retain the NWA World Heavyweight Championship |
| 25 | ROH | Best in the World | New York, New York | KENTA and Naomichi Marufuji defeated Samoa Joe and Bryan Danielson |
| 31 | ROH | Supercard of Honor | Chicago Ridge, Illinois | Bryan Danielson (c) defeated Roderick Strong to retain the ROH World Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### April

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 2 | WWE: Raw SmackDown! | WrestleMania 22 | Rosemont, Illinois | John Cena (c) defeated Triple H by submission in a Singles match to retain the WWE Championship | This was CM Punk's first appearance in WWE – who wrestled in Ohio Valley Wrestling at the time |
| 23 | TNA | Lockdown | Orlando | Sting's Warriors (Sting, A.J. Styles, Ron Killings and Rhino) defeated Jeff Jarrett's Army (Jeff Jarrett, Scott Steiner, Chris Harris and James Storm) | This event was Christy Hemme's debut in TNA |
| 28 | CMLL | 50. Aniversario de Arena México | Mexico City, Mexico | Los Guerreros de la Atlantida (Rey Bucanero and Tarzan Boy) defeated Los Perros del Mal (Damián 666 and Mr. Águila) in a Best two-out-of-three falls Lucha de Apuestas hair vs. hair match | |
| 30 | WWE: Raw | Backlash | Lexington, Kentucky | John Cena (c) defeated Triple H, and Edge in Triple threat match to retain the WWE Championship | |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### May

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event |
| 12 | CMLL | International Gran Prix | Mexico City, Mexico | Black Warrior defeated Místico (c) in a Best two-out-of-three falls match for the NWA World Middleweight Championship |
| 14 | TNA | Sacrifice | Orlando | Christian Cage (c) defeated Abyss in the Full Metal Mayhem match to retain the NWA World Heavyweight Championship |
| 21 | WWE: SmackDown! | Judgment Day | Phoenix, Arizona | Rey Mysterio (c) defeated John "Bradshaw" Layfield in a Singles match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) |||||

### June

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 7 | WWE: Raw SmackDown! ECW | WWE vs. ECW Head-to-Head | Dayton, Ohio | John Cena (WWE) defeated Sabu (ECW) by disqualification in a Singles match | |
| 11 | WWE: ECW | One Night Stand | New York City | Rob Van Dam cashed in his Money in the Bank contract and defeated John Cena (c) in an Extreme Rules match to win the WWE Championship | First WWE PPV for the ECW brand, a relaunch of the former Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion. |
| 18 | AAA | Triplemanía XIV | Naucalpan, Mexico | La Parka defeated Muerta Cibernética in a Best two-out-of-three falls Lucha de Apuesta, "Mask vs. Mask" match. As a result, Muerte Cibernetica was unmasked and revealed to be Ricky Banderas | |
| 18 | TNA | Slammiversary | Orlando | Jeff Jarrett defeated Christian Cage (c), Abyss, Ron Killings and Sting in the King of the Mountain match to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship | |
| 25 | WWE: Raw | Vengeance | Charlotte, North Carolina | D-Generation X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) defeated The Spirit Squad (Kenny, Johnny, Mitch, Nicky, and Mikey) in a Handicap match | Last WWE PPV appearance for Kurt Angle as an in-ring performer until 2017 |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### July

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 15 | ROH | Death Before Dishonor IV | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ROH (Samoa Joe, Adam Pearce, B. J. Whitmer, Ace Steel and Homicide) defeated CZW (Chris Hero, Claudio Castagnoli, Necro Butcher, Nate Webb and Eddie Kingston) in a Cage of Death | |
| 9-11 | Hustle | Hustle King Memorial Six Man Tag Team Tournament | Kanagawa and Tokyo, Japan | Various matches | |
| 16 | TNA | Victory Road | Orlando | Sting defeated Scott Steiner, Samoa Joe and Christian Cage in the Road to Victory match | |
| 23 | WWE: SmackDown! | The Great American Bash | Indianapolis, Indiana | King Booker defeated Rey Mysterio (c) in a Singles match to win the World Heavyweight Championship | First event to feature a Punjabi Prison match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### August

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 12 | WWC | 33rd WWC Aniversario | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | Carlito defeated X-Pac in a Singles match | |
| 6-13 | NJPW | G1 Climax | Tokyo | Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Satoshi Kojima in a G1 Climax tournament |
| 13 | TNA | Hard Justice | Orlando | Jeff Jarrett (c) defeated Sting in a Singles match to retain the NWA World Heavyweight Championship | |
| 16 | N/A | NZPWI Invitational | Lynfield, New Zealand | Alfred Valentine defeated Sweet Ass in a Singles match | |
| 20 | WWE: Raw SmackDown! ECW | SummerSlam | Boston, Massachusetts | Edge (c) defeated John Cena in a Singles match to retain the WWE Championship | This PPV is notable for being the last WWE event to feature a match for Hulk Hogan who wrestled Randy Orton |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### September

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 1-3 | PWG | Battle of Los Angeles | Reseda, California | Davey Richards defeated Cima and Super Dragon in a via pinfall in 13:42 to win the 2006 Battle of Los Angeles tournament | |
| 15 | ROH | Glory By Honor V | East Windsor, Connecticut | KENTA and Naomichi Marufuji defeated The Briscoe Brothers (Jay and Mark Briscoe) | |
| 16 | ROH | Glory By Honor V | New York City, New York | Bryan Danielson (c) defeated KENTA to retain the ROH World Championship | |
| 17 | AAA | Verano de Escándalo | Naucalpan, Mexico | Gronda, Octagón, and La Parka defeated La Legión Extranjera (Abyss, Jeff Jarrett, and Konnan) by disqualification in a Six-man "Lucha Libre rules" tag team match | |
| 17 | WWE: Raw | Unforgiven | Toronto, Ontario | John Cena defeated Edge (c) in the Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match to win the WWE Championship Had Cena lost, Cena would leave Raw for SmackDown! | This event featured Trish Stratus's retirement match. She won the match after forcing Lita to submit to the sharpshooter, thus becoming a record setting seven time WWE Women's Champion. She would periodically return later and had a second retirement match in 2019. |
| 23 | GCW | Third Annual Fred Ward Memorial Show | Columbus, Georgia | Chris Stevens (c) defeated Elix Skipper and Johnny Swinger in a No-DQ Three-Way Dance match for the GCW Heavyweight Championship | |
| 24 | TNA | No Surrender | Orlando | Samoa Joe defeated Jeff Jarrett in a "Fan's Revenge" Lumberjack match | At the end of the event, it was announced that Kurt Angle had been signed with TNA |
| 29 | CMLL | CMLL 73rd Anniversary Show | Mexico City, Mexico | Místico defeated Black Warrior in a Lucha de Apuestas mask vs. mask match | |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### October

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 8 | WWE: SmackDown! | No Mercy | Raleigh, North Carolina | King Booker (c) defeated Bobby Lashley, Batista and Finlay in Fatal 4-way match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship | |
| 20 | N/A | Pitbull/Public Enemy Memorial Cup | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | All Money Is Legal (K-Murda and K-Pusha) defeated The Rottweilers (Homicide and Ricky Reyes) | |
| 22 | TNA | Bound for Glory | Plymouth Township, Michigan | Sting defeated Jeff Jarrett (c) in Title vs. Career match to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship with Kurt Angle as the special outside enforcer | This event was Kurt Angle's first appearance in TNA PPV |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### November

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 5 | WWE: Raw | Cyber Sunday | Cincinnati, Ohio | King Booker (c) (SmackDown) defeated John Cena (Raw) and Big Show (ECW) in a Triple threat match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship | |
| 19 | TNA | Genesis | Orlando | Kurt Angle defeated Samoa Joe in a Singles match | |
| 26 | WWE: Raw SmackDown! ECW | Survivor Series | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Batista defeated King Booker (c) in Last Chance match to win the World Heavyweight Championship | This featured Lita's retirement match, where she lost the WWE Women's Championship to Mickie James. Lita would return for a couple of matches in 2018. |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

### December

| Date | Promotion(s) | Event | Location | Main Event | Notes |
| 3 | WWE: ECW | December to Dismember | Augusta, Georgia | Bobby Lashley defeated Big Show (c), Rob Van Dam, Hardcore Holly, CM Punk, and Test in an Extreme Elimination Chamber match to win the ECW World Championship | This PPV event was universally panned and is often considered to be the worst wrestling PPV event of all time Last WWE PPV appearance for Paul Heyman until 2012 This event received the lowest buyrate in WWE history until the introduction of the WWE Network in 2014. Final ECW-exclusive PPV before all WWE PPVs became tri-branded. |
| 8 | AAA | Guerra de Titanes | Madero, Mexico | Cibernético defeated Muerte Cibernetica in a Singles match | |
| 10 | TNA | Turning Point | Orlando | Samoa Joe defeated Kurt Angle in a Singles match | |
| 15 | CMLL | Sin Piedad | Mexico City | Shocker and Universo 2000 defeated Kenzo Suzuki and Marco Corleone | |
| 17 | WWE: SmackDown! | Armageddon | Richmond, Virginia | Batista and John Cena (Raw) defeated King Booker and Finlay in a Tag team match | |
| 23 | ROH | Final Battle | New York, New York | Homicide defeated Bryan Danielson (c) to win the ROH World Championship | |
| 25 | WWE: Raw SmackDown! ECW | Tribute to the Troops | Baghdad, Iraq | Carlito defeated Randy Orton in a Singles match |
| (c) – denotes defending champion(s) ||||||

## Accomplishments and tournaments
### AAA

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won | Notes |
| Rey de Reyes | Vampiro | March 10 | |

### TNA

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won | Notes |
| 2006 TNA World X Cup Tournament | Team TNA | May 18 | |
| Fight for the Right Tournament | Abyss | November 9 | |

#### TNA Year End Awards

| Poll | Winner(s) |
| Tag Team of the Year | A.J. Styles and Christopher Daniels |
| Knockout of the Year | Christy Hemme |
| Finisher of the Year | The Canadian Destroyer |
| Who To Watch in 2007 | Kurt Angle |
| Memorable Moment of the Year | Kurt Angle's debut at No Surrender |
| Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year | Eric Young |
| X Division Star of the Year | Samoa Joe |
| Feud of the Year | Samoa Joe and Kurt Angle |
| Match of the Year | Ultimate X Match: A.J. Styles and Christopher Daniels vs. The Latin American Xchange (Hernandez and Homicide) at No Surrender |
| Mr. TNA | Samoa Joe |

### WWE

| Accomplishment | Winner | Date won | Notes |
| Royal Rumble | Rey Mysterio | January 29 | Winner received their choice of a championship match for either Raw's WWE Championship or SmackDown's World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 22. Mysterio last eliminated Randy Orton to win and chose to challenge for his own brand's World Heavyweight Championship, but lost his title opportunity to Randy Orton at No Way Out, but still ended up being in the World Heavyweight Championship match at WrestleMania, which became a triple threat match between Mysterio, Orton, and champion Kurt Angle that Mysterio won. |
| Road to WrestleMania Tournament | Triple H | February 20 | Defeated Big Show and Rob Van Dam in the tournament final to determine the number one contender against John Cena for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 22; Triple H was unsuccessful in winning the title. |
| Money in the Bank ladder match | Rob Van Dam | April 2 | Defeated Bobby Lashley, Finlay, Matt Hardy, Ric Flair, and Shelton Benjamin to win a world championship match contract. Van Dam, who had been drafted to the new ECW brand, used the contract to cash in on Raw's WWE Championship at ECW One Night Stand, where he defeated John Cena to win the title and was also awarded the reinstated ECW World Heavyweight Championship. The WWE Championship transferred to ECW but was transferred back to Raw the following month when Edge defeated Van Dam for the title at Vengeance. |
| King of the Ring | Booker T | May 21 | Defeated Bobby Lashley in the tournament final to win and be crowned King of the Ring; Booker T subsequently changed his ring name to King Booker. |
| WWE Women's Championship Tournament | Lita | November 6 | Defeated Mickie James in the tournament final to win the vacant WWE Women's Championship; previous champion Trish Stratus had retired, thus vacating the title. |

#### WWE Hall of Fame

| Category | Inductee | Inducted by |
| Individual | Bret "Hit Man" Hart | Stone Cold Steve Austin |
| Individual | Eddie Guerrero | Chris Benoit, Rey Mysterio, and Chavo Guerrero |
| Individual | "Mean" Gene Okerlund | Hulk Hogan |
| Individual | Sensational Sherri | Ted DiBiase |
| Individual | Verne Gagne | Greg Gagne |
| Individual | "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas | S. D. Jones |
| Group | The Blackjacks | Bobby Heenan |
| Celebrity | William "The Refrigerator" Perry | John Cena |

## Awards and honors
### Pro Wrestling Illustrated

| Category | Winner |
| PWI Wrestler of the Year | John Cena |
| PWI Tag Team of the Year | A.J. Styles and Christopher Daniels |
| PWI Match of the Year | Shawn Michaels vs. Vince McMahon (WrestleMania 22) |
| PWI Feud of the Year | John Cena vs. Edge |
| PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year | Samoa Joe |
| PWI Most Hated Wrestler of the Year | Edge |
| PWI Comeback of the Year | Sting |
| PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year | Bobby Lashley |
| PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year | Matt Cappotelli |
| PWI Rookie of the Year | The Boogeyman |
| PWI Woman of the Year | Trish Stratus |
| PWI Lifetime Achievement | Harley Race |

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

* Inductee
* Paul Bowser
* Eddie Guerrero
* Hiroshi Hase
* Masakatsu Funaki
* Aja Kong

#### Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

| Category | Winner |
| Wrestler of the Year | Místico |
| Most Outstanding | Bryan Danielson |
| Best Box Office Draw | Kenta Kobashi |
| Tag Team of the Year | The Latin American Exchange (Homicide and Hernandez) |
| Most Improved | Takeshi Morishima |
| Best on Interviews | Mick Foley |

## Title changes
### NJPW

IWGP Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Brock Lesnar |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| July 15 | Vacated | N/A | |
| July 17 | Hiroshi Tanahashi | Circuit 2006 Turbulence | |
IWGP Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Cho-Ten (Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Masahiro Chono) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| July 2 | Shiro Koshinaka and Togi Makabe | Circuit 2006 Turbulence | |
| September 20 | Vacated | | |
| September 28 | Wild Child (Manabu Nakanishi and Takao Omori) | Circuit 2006 Final: Next Progress | |
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Black Tiger |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 19 | Tiger Mask IV | Acceleration | |
| May 3 | Koji Kanemoto | New Japan Cup 2006 Special | |
| December 24 | Minoru | Battle Xmas! Catch the Victory | |
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Hirooki Goto and Minoru |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 19 | El Samurai and Ryusuke Taguchi | Circuit 2006 Acceleration | |
| July 8 | Gedo and Jado | Circuit 2006 Turbulence | |

### TNA

TNA X Division Championship :
| Incoming champion – Samoa Joe |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| March 12 | Christopher Daniels | Destination X | |
| April 10 | Samoa Joe | Impact! | |
| June 19 | Senshi | Impact! | |
| October 22 | Chris Sabin | Bound for Glory | |
| October 24 | A.J. Styles | Impact! | |
| November 6 | Christopher Daniels | Impact! | |

### WWE

    – Raw
    – SmackDown!
    - ECW
Raw and SmackDown each had a world championship, a secondary championship, and a tag team championship for male wrestlers. ECW only had a world championship. SmackDown also had a title for their cruiserweight wrestlers. There was only one women's championship and it was exclusive to Raw.
WWE Championship :
| Incoming champion – John Cena |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 8 | Edge | New Year's Revolution | Cashed in his Money in the Bank contract from WrestleMania 21 immediately after John Cena won an Elimination Chamber match |
| January 29 | John Cena | Royal Rumble | |
| June 11 | Rob Van Dam | ECW One Night Stand | Cashed in his Money in the Bank contract from WrestleMania 22. This was an Extreme Rules match. Van Dam was then awarded the reinstated ECW World Heavyweight Championship for the new ECW brand |
| The title became property of the new ECW brand due to Rob Van Dam joining the ECW roster. |||||
| July 3 | Edge | Monday Night Raw | Triple threat match, also involving John Cena |
| The title became exclusive to the Raw brand due to Edge being a member of the Raw roster. |||||
| September 17 | John Cena | Unforgiven | Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match |
World Heavyweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Batista |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 10 (aired January 13) | Vacated | SmackDown! | Batista vacated the title after he was sidelined with a legit triceps injury. |
| January 10 (aired January 13) | Kurt Angle | SmackDown! | 20-man battle royal for the vacant title. |
| April 2 | Rey Mysterio | WrestleMania 22 | Triple threat match, also involving Randy Orton. The championship was referred to as the "World Championship", due to Mysterio not being a heavyweight |
| July 23 | King Booker | The Great American Bash | |
| November 26 | Batista | Survivor Series | Last Chance match |
ECW World Heavyweight Championship :
| (Title reactivated) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| June 13 | Rob Van Dam | ECW | The title was revived by WWE for the new ECW brand. Van Dam was awarded the title by Paul Heyman for winning the WWE Championship at ECW One Night Stand. |
| July 4 | Big Show | ECW | Extreme Rules match |
| December 3 | Bobby Lashley | December to Dismember | Extreme Elimination Chamber match, also involving Rob Van Dam, Hardcore Holly, Test, and CM Punk |
WWE Intercontinental Championship :
| Incoming champion – Ric Flair |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| February 20 | Shelton Benjamin | Monday Night Raw | |
| April 30 | Rob Van Dam | Backlash | Title for contract match, where Van Dam also defended his Money in the Bank contract |
| May 15 | Shelton Benjamin | Monday Night Raw | 3-on-2 handicap Texas tornado match, featuring Benjamin, Chris Masters, and Triple H against WWE Champion John Cena and Rob Van Dam, in which anyone who beat Cena or Van Dam would win their respective title; Benjamin pinned Van Dam |
| June 25 | Johnny Nitro | Vengeance | Triple threat match, also involving Carlito |
| October 2 | Jeff Hardy | Monday Night Raw | |
| November 6 | Johnny Nitro | Monday Night Raw | No disqualification match |
| November 13 | Jeff Hardy | Monday Night Raw | |
WWE United States Championship :
| Incoming champion – Vacant |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 10 (aired January 13) | Booker T | SmackDown! | Best of Seven series against Chris Benoit. After winning the first three matches, Randy Orton substituted for Booker T due to injury, losing the next three matches, but winning the final for the vacant title. |
| February 19 | Chris Benoit | No Way Out | |
| April 2 | John "Bradshaw" Layfield | WrestleMania 22 | |
| May 23 (aired May 26) | Bobby Lashley | SmackDown! | |
| July 11 (aired July 14) | Finlay | SmackDown! | |
| August 29 (aired September 1) | Mr. Kennedy | SmackDown! | Triple threat match, also involving Bobby Lashley. |
| October 10 (aired October 13) | Chris Benoit | SmackDown! | |
WWE Women's Championship :
| Incoming champion – Trish Stratus |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| April 2 | Mickie James | WrestleMania 22 | |
| August 14 | Lita | Monday Night Raw | |
| September 17 | Trish Stratus | Unforgiven | Trish Stratus' retirement match |
| September 18 | Vacated | Monday Night Raw | Vacated due to Trish Stratus' retirement |
| November 5 | Lita | Cyber Sunday | Lumberjill match. Lita defeated Mickie James in a tournament final |
| November 26 | Mickie James | Survivor Series | Lita's retirement match |
World Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – Kane and Big Show |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| April 3 | The Spirit Squad (Johnny, Kenny, Mikey, Mitch, and Nicky) | Monday Night Raw | Kenny and Mikey won the match, but all five members were recognized as champions under the Freebird Rule. |
| November 5 | Ric Flair and Roddy Piper | Cyber Sunday | Piper was voted into this match via web poll. Kenny and Mikey represented The Spirit Squad. |
| November 13 | Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton) | Monday Night Raw | |
WWE Tag Team Championship :
| Incoming champions – MNM (Joey Mercury and Johnny Nitro) |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| May 21 | Paul London and Brian Kendrick | Judgment Day | |
WWE Cruiserweight Championship :
| Incoming champion – Kid Kash |||||
| Date | Winner | Event/Show | Note(s) |
| January 29 | Gregory Helms | Royal Rumble | Six-way match, also involving Funaki, Jamie Noble, Nunzio, and Paul London. Helms transferred from Raw to SmackDown! after winning the title |

## Debuts

* January 3 - Arisa Nakajima
* January 6 – Mike Bailey
* February 24 – Kofi Kingston
* March 4 – Tomomitsu Matsunaga
* April 7 – Vladimir Kozlov
* May 26 – Hiro Tonai
* May 27 – Tetsuya Naito
* May 29 - Riho
* June 4 - SEINA
* June 13 – Kelly Kelly
* June 16 - Cody Rhodes
* June 18 – Yusuke Kubo
* July 1 – Victoria Crawford
* July 9 - Hiren and Tyrannosaurus Okuda
* July 16 – Hanako Nakamori
* July 17 – Kaji Tomato
* August 8 – Gota Ihashi
* August 16 – Layla El
* August 24 – Maryse
* November
** Rosa Mendes
** Brooke/Miss Tessmacher
* December 24 - Asuka Oki

## Retirements

* Ivory (1986–2006)
* Lex Luger (1985-2006)
* Mo (1991–2006) (first retirement, returned in 2014)
* Marc Mero (1990-2006)
* Mikey Batts (June 20, 2003 - June 14, 2006)
* Sean O'Haire (June 26, 2000 – June 28, 2006)
* Stacy Keibler (1999 – July 2006)
* Jackie Fargo (1950-September 16, 2006)
* Luther Reigns (1997 -September 16, 2006)
* Trish Stratus (March 19, 2000 – September 17, 2006) (brief return in 2011, 2018, Evolution and 2019)
* Lita (1999 – November 26, 2006) (occasional wrestler)

## Births

* December 28:
** Hina
** Rina

## Deaths

* January 15 - Ricky Romero, 74
* January 16 – El Texano, 47
* January 28 – Black Cat, 51
* January 28 – Emory Hale, 36
* February 11 - Jackie Pallo, 80
* February 16 - Johnny Grunge, 39
* March 14 - Marie Lograsso, 42/43
* April 2 - Víctor Quiñones, 46
* April 27 - Kay Noble, 65
* May 2 - Sam Steamboat, 71
* May 26 - Grigory Verichev, 49
* May 27 – Apache Bull Ramos, 68
* June 7 – Earthquake, 42
* June 23 - Luke Graham, 66
* June 25 - Harry Elliott, 101
* July 16 – Bob Orton, 76
* August 3 - Jim LaRock, 81
* September 15 - Ricky Gibson, 53
* October 5 – Antonio Peña, 55
* October 15 - Joey Maggs, 39
* October 26 - Kintarō Ōki, 77
* October 28 - Trevor Berbick, 52
* October 31 - Huracán Ramírez, 80
* November 3 - Sputnik Monroe, 77
* November 13 - Tiger Conway Sr., 74
* December 16 – Don Jardine, 66