2021 in professional wrestling
Professional wrestling-related events during the year of 2021
Overview of the events of 2021 in professional wrestling
List of years in professional wrestling
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2021 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling .
The COVID-19 pandemic severely affected the professional wrestling industry worldwide in 2020 , with many promotions presenting shows behind closed doors . Some events were canceled while others were rescheduled to occur in 2021. All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling reintroduced a limited number of live fans in the second half of 2020, while WWE had live fans at WrestleMania 37 in April 2021. The majority of promotions have continued to present empty arena shows or shows with limited capacity, while AEW and WWE resumed live touring with full capacity crowds in July.
These promotions held notable events throughout 2021.
Promotion Name
Abbreviation
Notes
Active Advance Pro Wrestling
2AW
All Elite Wrestling
AEW
All Japan Pro Wrestling
AJPW
Big Japan Pro Wrestling
BJW
CyberFight
CF
CyberFight is an umbrella brand that oversees and promotes four individual promotions: DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT), Ganbare☆Pro-Wrestling (GanPro), Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah), and Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling (TJPW).
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
CMLL
DDT Pro-Wrestling
DDT
Dragon Gate
—
Game Changer Wrestling
GCW
Gleat
—
Gleat promotes shows under the G Prowrestling and Lidet UWF sub-brands.
Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling-Explosion
FMW-E
Formerly known as Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling and Chō Sentō Puroresu FMW (FMW), in June 2021, the company became FMW-E and began to focus on promoting exploding death matches .
Impact Wrestling
Impact
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.
Major League Wrestling
MLW
Michinoku Pro Wrestling
M-Pro
National Wrestling Alliance
NWA
New Japan Pro-Wrestling
NJPW
Pro Wrestling Zero1
Zero1
Ring of Honor
ROH
World Wonder Ring Stardom
Stardom
WWE
—
"WWE" stands for World Wrestling Entertainment, which is still the legal name, but the company ceased using the full name in April 2011, with the WWE abbreviation becoming an orphaned initialism .WWE divides its roster into five storyline divisions – referred to as brands where wrestlers exclusively perform on their respective weekly television programs. Raw , SmackDown , and NXT are their three main brands, while NXT UK and 205 Live are specialty brands that are promoted under the NXT banner.
Calendar of notable shows
January
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
1
WWE :
New Year's SmackDown
St. Petersburg, Florida
Kevin Owens defeated Jey Uso
Aired as a special episode of SmackDown .
4
WWE :
Legends Night
Drew McIntyre (c) defeated Keith Lee to retain the WWE Championship
Aired as a special episode of Raw . Final appearances of Big Show and Mark Henry in WWE.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 15 in Tokyo Dome
Tokyo , Japan
Night 1: Kota Ibushi defeated Tetsuya Naito (c) to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the event had a limited attendance capacity of 20,000 for both nights; the Tokyo Dome has a total maximum capacity of 57,000.
5
Night 2: Kota Ibushi (c) defeated Jay White to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and IWGP Intercontinental Championship
6
New Year Dash!!
Los Ingobernables de Japón (Sanada , Shingo Takagi , Tetsuya Naito , Hiromu Takahashi , and Bushi ) defeated Golden Ace (Kota Ibushi and Hiroshi Tanahashi ), Roppongi 3K (Rocky Romero and Sho ), and Master Wato
MLW
Kings of Colosseum
Orlando, Florida
Alexander Hammerstone (c) vs. Mads Krügger for the MLW National Openweight Championship ended in a double countout
WWE :
New Year's Evil
Orlando, Florida
Finn Bálor (c) defeated Kyle O'Reilly to retain the NXT Championship
Aired as a special episode of NXT . "New Year's Evil" was previously a title of a special episode of WCW Monday Nitro that aired on December 27, 1999.
AEW
New Year's Smash
Jacksonville, Florida
Night 1: Kenny Omega (c) defeated Rey Fénix to retain the AEW World Championship
Aired as a two-part special of Dynamite . Night 1 was originally scheduled to air on December 30, 2020, with Night 2 on January 6, but the two-week event was delayed as AEW held a tribute show for Mr. Brodie Lee following his passing on December 26. Night 1 aired live while Night 2 was pre-recorded on January 7 and aired on January 13.
7
Night 2 (aired January 13): Darby Allin (c) defeated Brian Cage to retain the AEW TNT Championship .
9
Impact
Genesis
Nashville, Tennessee
Willie Mack defeated Moose in an "I quit" match
16
Hard To Kill
Kenny Omega and The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson ) defeated Rich Swann , Chris Sabin , and Moose
17
Stardom
Stardom 10th Anniversary Show
Tokyo, Japan
Utami Hayashishita (c) defeated Maika to retain the World of Stardom Championship
22
WWE :
Superstar Spectacle
St. Petersburg, Florida
Drew McIntyre and The Indus Sher (Rinku and Saurav ) defeated Jinder Mahal and The Bollywood Boyz (Samir Singh and Sunil Singh)
Aired on tape delay on January 26 as a television special for Indian Republic Day .
NJPW
Lion's Break Contender
Port Hueneme, California , United States
Week 1: Ren Narita defeated Bateman
Two-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
29
Week 2: Lio Rush , TJP , and Fred Rosser defeated Bullet Club (El Phantasmo , Hikuleo , and Kenta )
ROH
The Experience
Baltimore, Maryland
Jonathan Gresham (c) defeated Joe Keys to retain the ROH Pure Championship
Match took place on December 19, 2020, but aired on tape delay on January 29. Aired as a special episode of Ring of Honor Wrestling .
30
NJPW
The New Beginning in Nagoya
Nagoya , Japan
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Shingo Takagi (c) to win the NEVER Openweight Championship
31
WWE :
Royal Rumble
St. Petersburg, Florida
Edge won the 30-man Royal Rumble match by last eliminating Randy Orton to earn a world championship match at WrestleMania 37
Bianca Belair won the women's Royal Rumble match and chose to challenge for the SmackDown Women's Championship at WrestleMania 37. With Edge's win, he became the first wrestler to win a Royal Rumble match after being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame ; he chose to challenge for the Universal Championship . Last appearance of Christian in WWE,
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
February
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
3
AEW
Beach Break
Jacksonville, Florida
Kenny Omega and The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson ) defeated Jon Moxley and Death Triangle (Pac and Rey Fénix )
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite .
4
AJPW NJPW BJW
Giant Baba Anniversary Show [ 1]
Tokyo , Japan
Keiji Mutoh , Satoshi Kojima , and Suwama defeated Kaz Hayashi , Hiroyoshi Tenzan , and Masayuki Kono
10
NJPW
The New Beginning in Hiroshima
Hiroshima , Japan
Night 1: Hiromu Takahashi (c) defeated Sho to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
11
Night 2: Kota Ibushi (c) defeated Sanada to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and IWGP Intercontinental Championship
CF :
Destination: Back to Budokan
Tokyo, Japan
Keiji Mutoh defeated Go Shiozaki (c) to win the GHC Heavyweight Championship
13
Impact
No Surrender
Nashville, Tennessee
Rich Swann (c) defeated Tommy Dreamer to retain the Impact World Championship
GCW
Bloodsport 4
Los Angeles, California
Jeff Cobb defeated Chris Dickinson
Aired on tape delay on February 20
14
CF :
Kawasaki Strong
Kawasaki, Japan
Jun Akiyama defeated Tetsuya Endo (c) to win the KO-D Openweight Championship
WWE :
TakeOver: Vengeance Day
Orlando, Florida
Finn Bálor (c) defeated Pete Dunne to retain the NXT Championship
First Vengeance event since 2011.
17
MLW
Filthy Island
Kauai, Hawaii
Low Ki defeated King Mo Lawal in a No Holds Barred match
19
NJPW
The New Beginning USA Week 1
Port Hueneme, California
El Phantasmo defeated Lio Rush
The first part of a two-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
20
GCW
Bloodsport 5
Los Angeles, California
Jon Moxley defeated Davey Boy Smith Jr.
21
WWE :
Elimination Chamber
St. Petersburg, Florida
Drew McIntyre (c) defeated AJ Styles , Jeff Hardy , Kofi Kingston , Randy Orton , and Sheamus in an Elimination Chamber match to retain the WWE Championship , then The Miz cashed in his Money in the Bank contract and defeated McIntyre (c) to win the WWE Championship
Final WWE PPV to air on the standalone version of the WWE Network in the United States before its merger under Peacock on March 18.
26
NJPW
The New Beginning USA Week 2
Port Hueneme, California
Jon Moxley (c) defeated Kenta to retain the IWGP United States Championship
The second part of a two-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
27
Castle Attack
Osaka , Japan
Night 1: Kazuchika Okada defeated Evil
28
Night 2: Kota Ibushi (c) defeated Tetsuya Naito to retain the IWGP Intercontinental Championship
CF :
Into The Fight 2021
Tokyo, Japan
Shunma Katsumata (c) defeated Mao to retain the DDT Extreme Championship
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
March
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
3
AEW
The Crossroads
Jacksonville, Florida
"Hangman" Adam Page and John Silver defeated Marq Quen and Matt Hardy
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite . This event featured the AEW debut appearance of Paul Wight , formerly known as Big Show in WWE , which was his first appearance on TNT since 1999; Wight's signing with the company was announced on February 24.
Stardom
All Star Dream Cinderella
Tokyo , Japan
Tam Nakano defeated Giulia (c) in a Hair vs. Hair match to win the Wonder of Stardom Championship
4
NJPW
NJPW 49th Anniversary Show
Tokyo , Japan
Kota Ibushi (c) defeated El Desperado to unify the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and IWGP Intercontinental Championship into the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
First event to feature the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. Ibushi held both the Heavyweight and Intercontinental championships going into the match and was recognized as the inaugural World Heavyweight Champion upon defeating El Desperado.
6
CF :
Full Throttle in Yokohama
Yokohama, Kanagawa
Momo no Seishun Tag (Atsushi Kotoge and Daisuke Harada ) and Junta Miyawaki defeated Full Throtle (Hajime Ohara , Seiki Yoshioka and Yo-Hey )
7
CF :
Great Voyage in Yokohama
Yokohama, Kanagawa
The Aggression (Katsuhiko Nakajima and Masa Kitamiya ) defeated Sugiura-gun (Kazushi Sakuraba and Takashi Sugiura ) (c) to win the GHC Tag Team Championship
AEW
Revolution
Jacksonville, Florida
Kenny Omega (c) defeated Jon Moxley in an Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch to retain the AEW World Championship
This event was originally scheduled to be held on February 27, but was pushed back due to the Canelo Alvarez vs. Avni Yildirim boxing match, resulting in this being AEW's first PPV held on a Sunday. This event also featured Sting 's first match in AEW as well as his first match since WWE Night of Champions in September 2015. Sting's match, which was a tag team Street Fight , was pre-recorded on an unknown date at an undisclosed location in Atlanta, Georgia . The event also saw the debuts of Christian Cage and Ethan Page in AEW.
11
AEW
St. Patrick's Day Slam
Jacksonville, Florida
Thunder Rosa defeated Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. in an Unsanctioned Lights Out match
Aired on tape delay on March 17 as a special Saint Patrick's Day episode of Dynamite . First Dynamite to feature a women's match as the main event.
13
Impact
Sacrifice
Nashville, Tennessee
Rich Swann (Impact) defeated Moose (TNA) to unify the Impact World Championship and TNA World Heavyweight Championship as the Impact Unified World Championship
Aired as an Impact Plus special. Shortly after, the Impact Unified World Championship reverted to being called the Impact World Championship.
14
CF :
Great Voyage in Fukuoka
Fukuoka, Japan
Keiji Muto (c) defeated Kaito Kiyomiya to retain the GHC Heavyweight Championship
19
NJPW
Strong Style Evolved Week 1
Port Hueneme, California
Brody King defeated Bateman
The first part of a two-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
21
CF :
The Infinity
Tokyo, Japan
Kazuyuki Fujita defeated Kenoh (c) to win the GHC National Championship
NWA
Back For The Attack
Atlanta, Georgia
Nick Aldis (c) defeated Aron Stevens to retain the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship
WWE :
Fastlane
St. Petersburg, Florida
Roman Reigns (c) defeated Daniel Bryan to retain the WWE Universal Championship with Edge as the special guest enforcer
First Fastlane event since 2019. The event was available on PPV, the WWE Network , and Peacock 's WWE Network channel, marking the first WWE PPV to air on the WWE Network via Peacock in the United States under a new agreement with NBCUniversal , which began March 18, as well as the final event to be available on the standalone version of the American WWE Network before its shutdown on April 4. Also the final WWE PPV held at Tropicana Field , as the WWE ThunderDome was relocated to Yuengling Center in Tampa, Florida , which began April 12.
26
ROH
ROH 19th Anniversary
Baltimore, Maryland
Rush (c) defeated Jay Lethal to retain the ROH World Championship
CMLL
La Copa Junior VIP
Mexico City, Mexico
Volador Jr. (c) defeated Bandido to retain the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship
NJPW
Strong Style Evolved Week 2
Port Hueneme, California
David Finlay and Karl Fredericks defeated Team Filthy (Tom Lawlor and Danny Limelight )
The second part of a two-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
28
CF :
Judgement: DDT 24th Anniversary
Tokyo, Japan
Jun Akiyama (c) defeated Kazusada Higuchi to retain the KO-D Openweight Championship
31
MLW
Never Say Never
Orlando, Florida
Jacob Fatu (c) defeated Calvin Tankman to retain the MLW World Heavyweight Championship
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
April
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
2
WWE :
WrestleMania SmackDown
St. Petersburg, Florida
Jey Uso won the 22-man André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal by last eliminating Shinsuke Nakamura
Aired on tape delay on April 9 as a special WrestleMania Edition of SmackDown the night before WrestleMania 37 Night 1. Final show taped at Tropicana Field before WWE relocated the WWE ThunderDome to Yuengling Center in Tampa, Florida ; shows from the Yuengling Center began with the April 12 episode of Raw .
4
NJPW
Sakura Genesis
Tokyo, Japan
Will Ospreay defeated Kota Ibushi (c) to win the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
Stardom
Yokohama Dream Cinderella
Yokohama , Japan
Giulia and Syuri defeated Maika and Himeka (c) to win the Goddesses of Stardom Championship
7
WWE :
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver
Orlando, Florida
Night 1: Raquel González defeated Io Shirai (c) to win the NXT Women's Championship
First TakeOver held across two nights. The first night was simulcasted on the USA Network , marking the first TakeOver to air on USA, while the second night aired on PPV; both nights also aired on the WWE Network , which was the first WWE in-ring event to air on Peacock 's WWE Network channel in the United States after the shutdown of the standalone version of the American WWE Network on April 4. Also the first TakeOver to air on a Wednesday and Thursday night.
8
Night 2: Kyle O'Reilly defeated Adam Cole in an unsanctioned match
WWE :
Prelude
London, England
Walter (c) defeated Rampage Brown to retain the NXT United Kingdom Championship
Taped beforehand on an unknown date. Aired as a special episode of NXT UK , which aired midday before TakeOver: Stand & Deliver Night 2.
GCW
Bloodsport 6
Tampa, Florida
Josh Barnett defeated Jon Moxley
9
NJPW
New Japan Cup USA
Round 1
Port Hueneme, California
Brody King defeated Chris Dickinson
10
Impact
Hardcore Justice
Nashville, Tennessee
Violent By Design (Eric Young , Deaner , Joe Doering , and Rhino ) defeated Team Dreamer (Eddie Edwards , Rich Swann , Willie Mack , and Trey Miguel ) in an eight-man Hardcore War
WWE :
WrestleMania 37
Tampa, Florida
Night 1: Bianca Belair defeated Sasha Banks (c) to win the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship
This event was originally scheduled to take place in Inglewood, California on March 28, but was delayed and moved to Raymond James Stadium in Tampa (the original location of WrestleMania 36 ) due to the COVID-19 pandemic , as COVID-19 restrictions had yet been lifted in California, but Florida had lifted restrictions, allowing fans to attend events. It was also made a two-night event with a maximum limit of 25,000 spectators each night, being the first WWE event to have ticketed fans in attendance since the March 11, 2020 episode of NXT .
11
Night 2: Roman Reigns (c) defeated Edge and Daniel Bryan in a triple threat match to retain the WWE Universal Championship
13
WWE :
NXT ' s move to Tuesday
Orlando,Florida
Bronson Reed , Dexter Lumis , Ember Moon , and Shotzi Blackheart defeated The Way (Johnny Gargano , Austin Theory , Candice LeRae , and Indi Hartwell )
First NXT episode since the conclusion of the Wednesday Night Wars and the first on their new night on the USA Network .
16
NJPW
New Japan Cup USA
Semi-finals
Port Hueneme, California
Brody King defeated Lio Rush
23
NJPW
New Japan Cup USA
Final
Port Hueneme, California
Tom Lawlor defeated Brody King to win the inaugural NJPW Strong Openweight Championship
24
CMLL
65th. Aniversario de Arena México
Mexico City, Mexico
Atlantis , Volador Jr. and Euforia defeated Bárbaro Cavernario , Gran Guerrero and Último Guerrero in a two-out-of-three falls six-man tag team match
First Aniversario de Arena México event since 2019, due to a hiatus generated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
25
Impact
Rebellion
Nashville, Tennessee
Kenny Omega (AEW World Champion ) defeated Rich Swann (Impact World Champion ) in a Winner Takes All match
28
NJPW
Wrestling Satsuma
Kagoshima, Japan
Night 1: Roppongi 3K (Sho and Yoh ) defeated Suzuki-gun (El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru ) to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
29
Night 2: Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kota Ibushi defeated United Empire (Jeff Cobb and Aaron Henare )
CF :
The Glory
Nagoya , Japan
Keiji Muto (c) defeated Masa Kitamiya to retain the GHC Heavyweight Championship
30
NJPW
LA Dojo Showcase
Port Hueneme, California
Karl Fredericks defeated Clark Connors
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
May
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
1
AAA
Rey de Reyes
San Pedro Cholula , Puebla
Psycho Clown and Pagano vs. Chessman and Sam Adonis ended in a no contest
This event was originally scheduled to be held in Mérida, Yucatán on March 21, 2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
3
AJPW
Champion Carnival
Tokyo, Japan
Jake Lee defeated Kento Miyahara in the tournament final to win the 2021 Champion Carnival
NJPW
Wrestling Dontaku
Fukuoka, Japan
Night 1: Jay White defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) to win the NEVER Openweight Championship
4
Night 2: Will Ospreay (c) defeated Shingo Takagi to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
5
AEW
Blood & Guts
Jacksonville, Florida
The Pinnacle (MJF , Wardlow , Shawn Spears , Cash Wheeler , and Dax Harwood ) defeated The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho , Jake Hager , Sammy Guevara , Santana and Ortiz ) in a Blood and Guts match .
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite and featured the first-ever Blood and Guts match. While the Blood and Guts match aired live, the first hour of the show was pre-taped. This television special was originally scheduled to be held in Newark, New Jersey on March 25, 2020, but was postponed and relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
7
NJPW
Collision Week 1
Port Hueneme, California
Jon Moxley and Chris Dickinson defeated Yuji Nagata and Ren Narita
The first part of a three-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
WWE :
Throwback SmackDown
Tampa, Florida
Apollo Crews , King Corbin , Sami Zayn , Chad Gable , and Otis defeated Big E , Kevin Owens , Shinsuke Nakamura , and The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford )
Aired as a special episode of SmackDown as part of Fox Sports ' Throwback Week and featured logos and other stylistic parts from previous eras of the show.
15
Impact
Under Siege
Nashville, Tennessee
Moose defeated Chris Bey , Chris Sabin , Matt Cardona , Sami Callihan , and Trey Miguel in a six-way match to earn an Impact World Championship match
Aired as an Impact Plus special.
16
WWE :
WrestleMania Backlash
Tampa, Florida
Roman Reigns (c) defeated Cesaro to retain the WWE Universal Championship
First WWE PPV held at Yuengling Center during the COVID-19 pandemic . First Backlash to have an altered title, which became the event series' official name.
19
AJPW
Yokohama Extra
Yokohama, Japan
Ryuki Honda, Shotaro Ashino and Suwama defeat Total Eclipse (Jake Lee , Koji Doi and Kuma Arashi)
21
Champions Night
Tokyo, Japan
Total Eclipse (Hokuto Omori, Jake Lee and Tajiri ) defeated Evolution (Dan Tamura, Hikaru Sato and Suwama )
NJPW
Collision Week 2
Port Hueneme, California
Fred Rosser defeated Hikuleo in a No Disqualification match
The second part of a three-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
23
N/A
Hana Kimura Memorial Show
Tokyo , Japan
Asuka defeated Kagetsu
First anniversary of Hana Kimura 's death.
26
Gleat
G Prowrestling Ver.0
Tokyo , Japan
Soma Watanabe and #Stronghearts (El Lindaman and T-Hawk ) defeated Cima , Kaz Hayashi , and Minoru Tanaka
The first event of Gleat's G Prowrestling sub-brand.
28
CMLL
Copa Dinastías
Mexico City, Mexico
Los Divinos Laguneros (Blue Panther Jr. and Black Panther ) defeated Volador Jr. and Flyer to win the 2021 Copa Dinastías.
AEW
Friday Night Dynamite Week 1
Jacksonville, Florida
Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page defeated Evil Uno and Stu Grayson
Friday airing of Dynamite (due to 2021 NBA playoffs ).
NJPW
Collision Week 3
Port Hueneme, California
Tom Lawlor (c) defeated Chris Dickinson to retain the Strong Openweight Championship
The final part of a three-week event, promoted as part of New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America 's weekly TV show, NJPW Strong .
30
AEW
Double or Nothing
Jacksonville, Florida
The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho , Jake Hager , Sammy Guevara , Santana and Ortiz ) defeated The Pinnacle (MJF , Shawn Spears , Wardlow , Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood ) in a Stadium Stampede match where if The Inner Circle had lost, they would have been forced to disband
This event was originally scheduled to be held in Paradise, Nevada on May 29, but was moved and pushed back a day due to the COVID-19 pandemic . First major wrestling show to operate at full venue capacity during the pandemic. Featured the AEW debut appearance of Mark Henry and Lio Rush .
31
CF :
Mitsuharu Misawa Memorial
Tokyo , Japan
Keiji Mutoh and Masato Tanaka defeated Naomichi Marufuji and Masakatsu Funaki
Commemorative event for Mitsuharu Misawa
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
June
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
4
AEW
Friday Night Dynamite Week 2
Jacksonville, Florida
Dustin Rhodes defeated Nick Comoroto in a Bullrope match
Friday airing of Dynamite (due to 2021 NBA playoffs ). Featured the AEW debut appearance of Andrade El Idolo . Featured the first-ever Bullrope match in AEW.
CMLL
Viernes Espectacular Con Acceso Al Publico
Mexico City, Mexico
Carístico , Volador Jr. , and Mistico defeated El Terrible , Ángel de Oro , and Euforia
First Viernes Espectacular show with fans at full venue capacity.
6
CF :
CyberFight Festival
Saitama, Japan
Naomichi Marufuji defeated Keiji Mutoh (c) to win the GHC Heavyweight Championship
CF's first event to feature all four of its brands.
NWA
When Our Shadows Fall
Atlanta, Georgia
Nick Aldis (c) defeated Trevor Murdoch by disqualification to retain the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship
7
NJPW
Dominion 6.6 in Osaka-jo Hall
Osaka, Japan
Shingo Takagi defeated Kazuchika Okada to win the vacant IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
The event was originally scheduled to held on June 6, but was postponed to the following day due to the state of emergency in Japan because of the COVID-19 pandemic
9
Gleat
Lidet UWF Ver.0
Tokyo, Japan
Takanori Ito defeated Ryo Kawamura in a UWF rules match by referee stoppage
First event of Gleat's Lidet UWF sub-brand; this show was to test the revival of the UWF shoot style .
11
AEW
Friday Night Dynamite Week 3
Jacksonville, Florida
Adam Page and Preston "10" Vance defeated Team Taz (Brian Cage and Powerhouse Hobbs )
Friday airing of Dynamite (due to 2021 NBA playoffs ).
12
Impact
Against All Odds
Nashville, Tennessee
Kenny Omega (c) defeated Moose to retain the Impact World Championship
Aired as an Impact Plus special. The main event was held at Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida .
Stardom
Tokyo Dream Cinderella
Tokyo, Japan
Utami Hayashishita (c) vs. Syuri for the World of Stardom Championship ended by double knockout
13
WWE :
TakeOver: In Your House
Orlando, Florida
Karrion Kross (c) defeated Adam Cole , Johnny Gargano , Kyle O'Reilly , and Pete Dunne in a fatal five-way match to retain the NXT Championship
18
CMLL
Torneo Increíble de Parejas Night 1
Mexico City, Mexico
Carístico and Virus defeated Blue Panther Jr. and Sansón
AEW
Friday Night Dynamite Week 4
Jacksonville, Florida
Matt Jackson and The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson ) defeated Eddie Kingston , Frankie Kazarian , and Penta El Zero Miedo
Friday airing of Dynamite (due to 2021 NBA playoffs ).
NJPW
Ignition Week 1
Port Hueneme, California
Satoshi Kojima defeated JR Kratos
Week 1 of a two-part special episode of NJPW Strong .
19
CMLL
Dia Del Padre
Mexico City, Mexico
La Sangre Dinamita (El Cuatrero , Forastero and Sansón ) defeated El Sky Team (Místico and Volador Jr. ) and Carístico
20
CMLL
Torneo Increíble de Parejas Night 2
Mexico City, Mexico
Los Gemelos Diablos (Gemelo Diablo I, Gemelo Diablo II) and Negro Casas defeated El Sky Team (Místico , Volador Jr. ) and Titán
WWE :
Hell in a Cell
Tampa, Florida
Bobby Lashley (c) defeated Drew McIntyre in a Last Chance Hell in a Cell match to retain the WWE Championship
WWE's final PPV produced from the WWE ThunderDome , due to the company's resumption of a live touring schedule that began with the July 16 episode of SmackDown . Second Hell in a Cell not held in October.
22
CMLL
62. Aniversario Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
El Hijo del Villano III , El Satánico , Felino Jr. and Mephisto defeated Argos, Atlantis Jr. , Carístico and Joker
CMLL
Torneo Increíble de Parejas Night 3
Mexico City, Mexico
Los Divinos Laguneros (Blue Panther Jr. , Black Panther ) and Felino defeated Bárbaro Cavernario , Gran Guerrero and Último Guerrero
25
NJPW
Ignition Week 2
Port Hueneme, California
Tom Lawlor (c) defeated Karl Fredericks to retain the Strong Openweight Championship
Week 2 of a two-part special episode of NJPW Strong .
CMLL
Torneo Increíble de Parejas Finals Night 4
Mexico City, Mexico
Templario and Volador Jr. defeated Carístico and Virus in a best two-out-of-three falls tag team match to win the 2021 Torneo Increible de Parejas.
26
AJPW
Champions Night 2
Tokyo, Japan
Jake Lee defeated Kento Miyahara and Yuma Aoyagi in a three-way tomoe battle match to win the vacant Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
CF :
Cage War
Tokyo, Japan
Masa Kitamiya defeated Katsuhiko Nakajima in a Hair vs. Hair Steel Cage Death match
ROH
Survival of the Fittest
Baltimore, Maryland
Bandido defeated Eli Isom, Chris Dickinson , Rhett Titus , Brian Johnson and Flamita in a Six-Way Elimination match to win the 2021 Survival of the Fittest .
AEW
Saturday Night Dynamite
Jacksonville, Florida
Kenny Omega (c) defeated Jungle Boy to retain the AEW World Championship
Saturday airing of Dynamite (due to 2021 NBA playoffs ).
27
CF :
Muta the World
Tokyo, Japan
The Great Muta defeated Kenoh
30
AEW
Dynamite Fan Appreciation Night
Jacksonville, Florida
MJF defeated Sammy Guevara
Dynamite ' s return to Wednesday night after disruptions caused by the 2021 NBA playoffs . AEW's final event of their 14-month residency at Daily's Place (which began due to the COVID-19 pandemic ), the event was billed as Fan Appreciation Night for live event attendees.
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
July
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
1
Gleat
Gleat Ver.1
Tokyo , Japan
Sho defeated Takanori Ito in a UWF Rules match
Promoted as the official launch of Gleat.
2
NJPW
Fireworks Frenzy
Port Hueneme, California
Fred Rosser defeated Bateman
3
AAA
Verano de Escándalo
Tequisquiapan , Querétaro , Mexico
Los Mercenarios (Rey Escorpion , Taurus , and Texano Jr. ) (c) defeated Los Psycho Circus (Monster Clown , Murder Clown and Psycho Clown ) to retain the AAA World Trios Championship
4
FMW-E
Independence Day
Yokohama , Japan
Atsushi Onita , Minoru Fujita and Ricky Fuji defeated Abdullah Kobayashi , Onryo and Yuko Miyamoto in a barbed wire and explosive rigged ring deathmatch .
Stardom
Yokohama Dream Cinderella in Summer
Yokohama , Japan
Utami Hayashishita (c) defeated Natsuko Tora to retain the World of Stardom Championship
CMLL
Atlantis 38th Anniversary Show Week 1
Mexico City, Mexico
Atlantis and Atlantis Jr. defeated Pantera del Ring and Pantera del Ring Jr.
6
WWE :
The Great American Bash
Orlando, Florida
Adam Cole defeated Kyle O'Reilly
Aired as a special episode of NXT .
7
AEW
Road Rager
Miami, Florida
The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) (c) defeated Eddie Kingston and Penta El Zero Miedo in a Street Fight to retain the AEW World Tag Team Championship
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite . AEW's first event held outside of Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida following a year of using the venue as a home base due to the COVID-19 pandemic , becoming the first major American promotion to resume live touring during the pandemic. The event also marked the AEW in-ring debut of Andrade El Idolo , as well as the AEW debut appearance of Malakai Black , formerly Aleister Black in WWE .
10
MLW
Battle Riot III
Philadelphia , Pennsylvania
Alexander Hammerstone won a 40-man battle riot match for a future MLW World Heavyweight Championship opportunity
First MLW event with live fans since March 13, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
NJPW
Summer Struggle in Sapporo
Sapporo, Japan
El Desperado (c) defeated Taiji Ishimori to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
11
Los Ingobernables de Japón (Tetsuya Naito and Sanada ) defeated Dangerous Tekkers (Taichi and Zack Sabre Jr. ) (c) to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship
CF :
Cross Over in Sendai
Sendai, Japan
Naomichi Marufuji (c) defeated Takashi Sugiura to retain the GHC Heavyweight Championship
ROH
Best in the World
Baltimore, Maryland
Bandido defeated Rush (c) to win the ROH World Championship
First ROH event with live fans since February 29, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
CMLL
Atlantis 38th Anniversary Show Week 2
Mexico City, Mexico
Atlantis and Atlantis Jr. defeated Negro Casas and El Felino
14
AEW
Fyter Fest Night 1
Cedar Park, Texas
Darby Allin defeated Ethan Page in a Coffin match
Night 1 of a two-part special episode of Dynamite .
16
NJPW
Tag Team Turbulence Week 1
Port Hueneme, California
Violence Unlimited (Brody King and Chris Dickinson ) defeated Team Filthy (J. R. Kratos and Danny Limelight )
WWE :
SmackDown Live With Fans
Houston, Texas
Seth Rollins defeated Big E , Kevin Owens , and Shinsuke Nakamura in a fatal four-way match
First SmackDown held live with fans since March 6, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic , marking WWE's resumption of live touring.
CMLL
Leyenda de Plata Week 1
Mexico City, Mexico
Templario defeated Místico II in the Leyenda de Plata Tournament semi-finals
17
Impact
Slammiversary
Nashville, Tennessee
Kenny Omega (c) defeated Sami Callihan in No Disqualification match to retain the Impact World Championship
First Impact Wrestling show to have live fans since March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
18
WWE :
Money in the Bank
Fort Worth , Texas
Roman Reigns (c) defeated Edge to retain the WWE Universal Championship
WWE's first PPV held outside of Florida since Elimination Chamber in March 2020 and the first following the end of the ThunderDome Era .
CMLL
Atlantis 38th Anniversary Show Week 3
Mexico City, Mexico
Último Guerrero and Gran Guerrero defeated Atlantis and Atlantis Jr.
21
AEW
Fyter Fest Night 2
Garland, Texas
Lance Archer (with Jake Roberts ) defeated Jon Moxley (c) by knockout in a Texas Death match to win the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
Night 2 of a two-part special episode of Dynamite . Featured the AEW debut appearance of Chavo Guerrero Jr.
22
NJPW
Summer Struggle in Osaka
Osaka, Japan
Taichi defeated Tetsuya Naito
23
Tetsuya Naito defeated Zack Sabre Jr.
Tag Team Turbulence Week 2
Port Hueneme, California
Tom Lawlor (c) defeated Satoshi Kojima to retain the Strong Openweight Championship
WWE :
SmackDown at Rolling Loud
Cleveland, Ohio Miami, Florida
Jimmy Uso defeated Dominik Mysterio
Two matches were broadcast from the Rolling Loud hip hop music festival in Miami. The remainder of the show aired from the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse .
CMLL
Leyenda de Plata Week 2
Mexico City, Mexico
Titán defeated Carístico in the quarter-finals of the Leyenda de Plata tournament
24
NJPW
Summer Struggle in Nagoya
Aichi, Japan
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Kenta
25
NJPW
Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome
Tokyo, Japan
Shingo Takagi (c) defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
Originally scheduled to be held on May 29 but was postponed to July 25 because the Japanese government extended its state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic .[ 2] [ 3]
Gleat :
G Prowrestling Ver.1
Osaka , Japan
Hayato Tamura and Ryuichi Kawakami defeated El Lindaman and Soma Watanabe
Promoted as the official launch of Gleat's sub-brand, G Prowrestling.
CMLL
Atlantis 38th Anniversary Show Week 4
Mexico City, Mexico
Atlantis vs. Blue Panther ended in a time-limit draw
27
WWE :
NXT on Syfy Week 1
Orlando, Florida
Adam Cole defeated Bronson Reed
Aired as a special episode of NXT . First episode of NXT on Syfy since September 28, 2010.
28
AEW
Fight for the Fallen
Charlotte, North Carolina
"The Painmaker" Chris Jericho defeated Nick Gage in a No Rules match
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite .
30
NJPW
Tag Team Turbulence Week 3
Port Hueneme, California
The Good Brothers (Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows ) defeated Violence Unlimited (Brody King and Chris Dickinson ) in the Tag Team Turbulence tournament final
CMLL
Leyenda de Plata Finals Week 3
Mexico City, Mexico
Titán defeated Templario to win the 2021 Leyenda de Plata tournament final
31
Stardom
5 Star Grand Prix Night 1
Yokohama, Japan
Maika defeated Utami Hayashishita in a 5 Star Grand Prix tournament match
Impact
Homecoming
Nashville, Tennessee
Eddie Edwards defeated W. Morrissey in a Hardcore match
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
August
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
1
CF :
Cross Over in Hiroshima
Hiroshima, Japan
Naomichi Marufuji (c) defeated Kazushi Sakuraba to retain the GHC Heavyweight Championship
3
WWE :
NXT on Syfy Week 2
Orlando, Florida
Johnny Gargano defeated Dexter Lumis
Aired as a special episode of NXT . Second episode of NXT on Syfy since September 28, 2010.
4
Gleat
G Prowrestling Ver.2
Tokyo , Japan
#Stronghearts (El Lindaman and Issei Onitsuka) defeated Takanori Ito and Yu Iizuka
AEW
Homecoming
Jacksonville, Florida
Malakai Black defeated Cody Rhodes
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite . Featured Malakai Black's AEW in-ring debut.
13
Rampage Debut
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D. (c) defeated Red Velvet to retain the AEW Women's World Championship
This event marks the first weekly wrestling series to air Friday nights on a Turner channel since WCW Power Hour in 1994.
14
AAA
Triplemanía XXIX
Azcapotzalco , Mexico City , Mexico
Psycho Clown defeated Rey Escorpión in a Lucha de Apuestas Mask vs. Hair match
First event with the public since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic .
NJPW
Resurgence
Los Angeles, California
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Lance Archer (c) to win the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
15
CF :
Kawasaki Go!
Kawasaki, Japan
Takashi Sugiura (GHC National Champion ) defeated Masato Tanaka (World Heavyweight Champion ) in a Winner Takes All match
16
NJPW
Fighting Spirit Unleashed
Long Beach, California
Tom Lawlor (c) (with J. R. Kratos ) defeated Lio Rush to retain the Strong Openweight Championship
20
AEW
The First Dance
Chicago, Illinois
Jon Moxley defeated Daniel Garcia
Aired as a special episode of Rampage . Also featured the return of CM Punk to pro wrestling after a seven-year hiatus.
Impact
Emergence
Nashville, Tennessee
Christian Cage (c) defeated Brian Myers (with Sam Beale) to retain the Impact World Championship
NJPW
Summer Struggle USA
Port Hueneme, California
West Coast Wrecking Crew (Royce Isaacs and Jorel Nelson ) defeated Violence Unlimited (Brody King and Chris Dickinson )
ROH
Glory By Honor XVIII
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Bandido (c) defeated Flip Gordon to retain the ROH World Championship
21
Vincent defeated Matt Taven in a steel cage match to earn a shot at the ROH World Championship
WWE :
SummerSlam
Paradise, Nevada
Roman Reigns (c) defeated John Cena to retain the WWE Universal Championship
First SummerSlam to take place on a Saturday since the 1992 event , but the first to air live on a Saturday. Also the first to not be held on a Sunday since the 1994 event , which was held on a Monday.
CF :
Wrestle Peter Pan
Kawasaki, Japan
Konosuke Takeshita defeated Jun Akiyama (c) to win the KO-D Openweight Championship
First Peter Pan to take place outside of Tokyo .
22
WWE :
TakeOver 36
Orlando, Florida
Samoa Joe defeated Karrion Kross (c) to win the NXT Championship
Final TakeOver event.
27
NJPW
Summer Struggle USA
Port Hueneme, California
Juice Robinson , Lio Rush , Brody King and Chris Dickinson defeated Tom Lawlor , J. R. Kratos , Jorel Nelson and Royce Isaacs
CMLL
CMLL Universal Amazons Championship Final
Mexico City , Mexico
La Jarochita defeated Dark Silueta to win the CMLL Universal Amazons Championship
28
NWA
EmPowerrr
St. Louis, Missouri
Chelsea Green defeated Bianca Carrelli, Debbie Malenko , Lady Frost, Jamie Senegal (with Pollo Del Mar), Jennacide (with Taryn Terrell ), Kiera Hogan , Masha Slamovich , Thunder Kitty, and Tootie Lynn to win the NWA Women's Invitational Cup Gauntlet
NWA's first all-female event.
29
73rd Anniversary Show
Trevor Murdoch defeated Nick Aldis (c) in a Title vs. Career match to win the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
September
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
3
NJPW
BBQ Brawl
Port Hueneme, California
Hikuleo defeated Matt Morris
4
Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome
Tokorozawa, Japan
Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) defeated Kota Ibushi to retain the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
5
Shingo Takagi (c) defeated Evil to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
AEW
All Out
Hoffman Estates, Illinois
Kenny Omega (c) defeated Christian Cage to retain the AEW World Championship
First AEW PPV held outside of Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. This event featured CM Punk 's first professional wrestling match in 7 years since leaving WWE , as well as the AEW debut appearances of Minoru Suzuki , Adam Cole , Ruby Soho , and Bryan Danielson (the latter two formerly known as Ruby Riott and Daniel Bryan, respectively, in WWE).
9
CMLL
International Women's Grand Prix
Mexico City , Mexico
Team Mexico (Dark Silueta ) defeated Team International (Tsukushi )
10
WWE :
Super SmackDown Live from Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York
The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) (c) vs. The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford) for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship ended by disqualification
NJPW
LA Dojo Showcase 2
Port Hueneme, California
Ren Narita defeated Karl Fredericks
12
ROH
Death Before Dishonor XVIII
Philadelphia , Pennsylvania
Bandido (c) defeated Brody King , Demonic Flamita and EC3 in a four corner survival elimination match to retain the ROH World Championship
14
WWE :
NXT 2.0
Orlando, Florida
Tommaso Ciampa defeated L. A. Knight , Pete Dunne , and Von Wagner in a fatal four-way match to win the vacant NXT Championship
The first episode of the newly revamped NXT , featuring a new logo, remodeled Capitol Wrestling Center , and new theme song performed by Wale .
AJPW BJW CF :Dragon Gate M-Pro NJPW Zero1 2AW
Legacy: 70th Anniversary of Japan Pro Wrestling [ 4]
Tokyo, Japan
Masaaki Mochizuki won an 18-man battle royal by lastly eliminating Isami Kodaka
Two-day show celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance in Korakuen Hall
15
Kikutaro won a 15-man battle royal by lastly eliminating Jun Kasai
17
CMLL
Homenaje a Dos Leyendas
Mexico City , Mexico
Bárbaro Cavernario defeated El Felino in a Best two-out-of-three hair vs. hair match
18
Impact
Victory Road
Nashville, Tennessee
Christian Cage (c) defeated Ace Austin to retain the Impact World Championship
NJPW
Fighting Spirit Unleashed Week 1
Long Beach, California
Juice Robinson vs. Hikuleo in a Tables match
Taped on August 16.
22
AEW
Dynamite : Grand Slam
Queens, New York
Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (c) (with Jamie Hayter and Rebel ) defeated Ruby Soho to retain the AEW Women's World Championship
Aired live as a special episode of Dynamite . AEW's New York City debut. The first part of AEW's two-part Grand Slam event.
Rampage : Grand Slam
Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston defeated Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki and Lance Archer ) in a Lights Out match
Aired on tape delay on September 24 as a special episode of Rampage . The second part of AEW's two-part Grand Slam event.
24
CMLL
88th Anniversary Show
Mexico City , Mexico
La Jarochita and Lluvia (c) defeated Dark Silueta and Reyna Isis to retain the Mexican National Women's Tag Team Championship
25
NJPW
Fighting Spirit Unleashed Week 2
Long Beach, California
Fred Rosser vs. Ren Narita
Taped on August 16.
26
WWE :
Extreme Rules
Columbus, Ohio
Roman Reigns (c) (with Paul Heyman ) defeated "The Demon" Finn Bálor to retain the WWE Universal Championship
2020's Extreme Rules was originally scheduled to be held in San Jose, California , but was relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The SAP Center announced they would instead host the 2021 event. The 2021 event had been reported to be held on July 18, but that date was instead given to Money in the Bank . The event was then moved to September 26 in Ohio.
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
October
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
1
WWE :
2021 WWE Draft Night 1
Baltimore, Maryland
Sasha Banks defeated Bianca Belair
First night of the annual WWE Draft , where wrestlers were drafted between the Raw and SmackDown brands . Aired as an episode of SmackDown .
2
NJPW
Fighting Spirit Unleashed
Week 3
Long Beach, California
Tom Lawlor (c) defeated Lio Rush to retain the Strong Openweight Championship [ 5]
Taped on August 16.
MLW
Fightland
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Alexander Hammerstone (National) defeated Jacob Fatu (World) in a Title vs. Title No Disqualification match for the MLW World Heavyweight Championship and the MLW National Openweight Championship
4
WWE :
2021 WWE Draft Night 2
Nashville, Tennessee
Bianca Belair defeated Charlotte Flair (c) by disqualification in a Raw Women's Championship match
Second night of the annual WWE Draft , where wrestlers were drafted between the Raw and SmackDown brands . Aired as an episode of Raw .
6
AEW
2nd Anniversary Show
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Adam Page defeated Andrade El Idolo , Jon Moxley , Lance Archer , Matt Hardy , and Orange Cassidy in the Casino Ladder match to earn a match for the AEW World Championship
Celebrated the second anniversary of Dynamite .
8
WWE :
SmackDown Season Premiere
San Jose, California
Finn Bálor defeated Cesaro in a 2021 King of the Ring first-round match
The 2021–22 season premiere of SmackDown . Featured King of the Ring and Queen's Crown tournament quarter-final matches.
9
TJPW
Wrestle Princess II
Tokyo, Japan
Miyu Yamashita (c) defeated Maki Itoh to retain the Princess of Princess Championship
AAA
Héroes Inmortales XIV
Orizaba , Mexico
La Empresa (Puma King , Sam Adonis , and DMT Azul ) defeated Dave the Clown and Los Psycho Circus (Psycho Clown , and Murder Clown ) in Steel Cage Trios match
Gleat :
Lidet UWF Ver.1
Tokyo , Japan
Daichi Hashimoto defeated Yu Iizuka in a UWF Rules match
Promoted as the official launch of Gleat's Lidet UWF sub-brand; it was an UWF International revival show held by Kiyoshi Tamura .
Stardom
Stardom 10th Anniversary Grand Final Osaka Dream Cinderella
Nagoya, Japan
Utami Hayashishita (c) defeated Takumi Iroha to retain the World of Stardom Championship
First joshi puroresu event hosted by the Osaka-jō Hall since 1995 .
Impact
Knockouts Knockdown
Nashville, Tennessee
Decay (Havok and Rosemary ) (c) (with Black Taurus and Crazzy Steve ) defeated The Influence (Madison Rayne and Tenille Dashwood ) (with Kaleb with a K ) for the Impact Knockouts Tag Team Championship
NJPW
Autumn Attack
Week 1
Garland, Texas
Jay White defeated Robbie Eagles
Taped on September 25.
10
CF :
Noah Grand Square 2021
Osaka, Japan
Katsuhiko Nakajima defeated Naomichi Marufuji (c) to win the GHC Heavyweight Championship
15
WWE :
Supersized SmackDown
Ontario, California
Sasha Banks defeated Becky Lynch
Special two-and-a-half-hour edition of SmackDown .
16
AEW
Saturday Night Dynamite
Week 1
Miami, Florida
Bryan Danielson defeated Bobby Fish
Saturday airing of Dynamite (due to TNT coverage of the 2021–22 NHL season ).
NJPW
Autumn Attack
Week 2
Garland, Texas
Will Ospreay defeated Karl Fredericks
Taped on September 25.
21
WWE :
Crown Jewel
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Roman Reigns (c) defeated Brock Lesnar to retain the WWE Universal Championship
Featured the finals of the King of the Ring and inaugural Queen's Crown tournaments.
22
GCW
Bloodsport 7
Los Angeles, California
Minoru Suzuki defeated Chris Dickinson
23
AEW
Saturday Night Dynamite
Week 2
Orlando, Florida
Cody Rhodes defeated Malakai Black
Saturday airing of Dynamite (due to TNT coverage of the 2021–22 NHL season ).
NJPW
Autumn Attack
Week 3
Garland, Texas
Juice Robinson defeated Hikuleo in a Texas Bullrope match
Taped on September 26.
Impact
Bound for Glory
Sunrise Manor, Nevada
Josh Alexander defeated Christian Cage (c) to win the Impact World Championship
24
NWA
By Any Means Necessary
Oak Grove, Kentucky
Jax Dane defeated Crimson in a Steel Cage match
25
WWE :
Raw Season Premiere
Houston, Texas
Seth Rollins defeated Finn Bálor , Kevin Owens , and Rey Mysterio in a four-way ladder match to become the number one contender for the WWE Championship
The 2021–22 season premiere of Raw .
26
WWE :
Halloween Havoc
Orlando, Florida
Tommaso Ciampa (c) defeated Bron Breakker to retain the NXT Championship
Special Halloween -themed episode of NXT 2.0 . Featured a special appearance by Chucky , who served as a host of the show.
30
NJPW
Autumn Attack
Week 4
Garland, Texas
Suzuki-gun (Lance Archer and Minoru Suzuki ) defeated Team Filthy (Royce Isaacs and Tom Lawlor )
Taped on September 26.
31
FMW-E
Destiny
Trenton, New Jersey
Atsushi Onita defeated Matt Tremont in an Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch
A co-promoted event with the Hardcore Hustle Organization, it was the first event promoted in the United States by FMW-E in its current incarnation.
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
November
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
2
CMLL
Día de Muertos
Day 1
Mexico City , Mexico
Atlantis Jr. defeated Volador Jr. in an elimination match
3
Stardom
Kawasaki Super Wars
Kawasaki, Japan
Utami Hayashishita (c) defeated Hazuki to retain the World of Stardom Championship
5
CMLL
Día de Muertos
Day 2
Mexico City , Mexico
El Terrible (c) defeated Atlantis Jr. in a Best two-out-of-three falls match in the 2021 Rey del Inframundo championship Tournament Final
6
MLW
War Chamber
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Hammerheads (Alexander Hammerstone , EJ Nduka , Matanza Duran , Richard Holliday , and Savio Vega ) defeated Contra Unit (Ikuro Kwon, Jacob Fatu , Mads Krügger , Sentai Death Squad #1, and Sentai Death Squad #2) in a War Chamber match
The event was originally scheduled for September 11 in Dallas, Texas but was postponed due to a surge of COVID-19 cases in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex .
CMLL
Arena Coliseo Grand Reopening
Mexico City , Mexico
Los Guerreros Laguneros (Gran Guerrero and Ultimo Guerrero ) and Atlantis Jr. defeated El Felino , Místico and Volador Jr. in a Best Two Out Of Three Falls Six Man Tag Team Match
First Show in Arena Coliseo since COVID-19 pandemic
NJPW
Power Struggle
Osaka, Japan
Shingo Takagi (c) defeated Zack Sabre Jr. to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
New Japan Showdown
Week 1
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Clark Connors and Ren Narita defeated United Empire (Will Ospreay and TJP )
Taped on October 16.
13
CF :
Noah Demolition Stage 2021
Yokohama, Japan
M's Alliance (Keiji Muto and Naomichi Marufuji ) defeated Kaito Kiyomiya and Masa Kitamiya (c) to win the GHC Tag Team Championship
AEW
Full Gear
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Adam Page defeated Kenny Omega (c) to win the AEW World Championship
The event was originally scheduled to be held on November 6 in St. Louis, Missouri , but was moved to avoid competition with UFC 268 and Canelo Álvarez vs. Caleb Plant .
NJPW
New Japan Showdown
Week 2
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Minoru Suzuki defeated Chris Dickinson
Taped on October 16.
Battle in the Valley
San Jose, California
Tomohiro Ishii defeated Jay White (c) to win the NEVER Openweight Championship
14
ROH
Honor For All
Baltimore, Maryland
Bandido defeated Demonic Flamita in a No Disqualification match
WWE :
Tribute to the Troops
Ontario, California
Roman Reigns defeated Shinsuke Nakamura in a singles match
Taped on October 15. First Tribute to the Troops to not air in December.
19
CMLL NJPW
CMLL vs. NJPW
Day 1
Mexico City , Mexico
United Empire (TJP and Jeff Cobb ) defeated Volador Jr. and Atlantis Jr.
20
CMLL vs. NJPW
Day 2
Mexico City , Mexico
United Empire (TJP and Jeff Cobb ) defeated El Terrible and Euforia
Impact
Turning Point
Sunrise Manor, Nevada
Moose (c) defeated Eddie Edwards in a Full Metal Mayhem match to retain the Impact World Championship
NJPW
New Japan Showdown
Week 3
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
TJP defeated Clark Connors
Taped on October 17.
21
WWE :
Survivor Series
Brooklyn, New York
Roman Reigns (SmackDown's Universal Champion ) defeated Big E (Raw's WWE Champion ) in a Champion vs. Champion non-title singles match
CMLL NJPW
CMLL vs. NJPW
Day 3
Mexico City , Mexico
United Empire (Jeff Cobb and TJP ) defeated El Terrible and Hechicero
22
CMLL vs. NJPW
Day 4
Puebla, Mexico
Volador Jr. and Fugaz vs TJP and Atlantis Jr.
24
AEW
Thanksgiving Dynamite
Chicago, Illinois
Andrade El Idolo , Malakai Black , FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler ) defeated Pac , Penta El Cero M , Rey Fenix , and Cody Rhodes
Thanksgiving themed episode of Dynamite .
26
WWE :
Thanksgiving SmackDown
Greensboro, North Carolina
Sami Zayn won a Black Friday Battle Royal to become the #1 contender for the WWE Universal Championship
Special Thanksgiving -themed episode of SmackDown .
CMLL
Torneo de Leyenda de Azul
Mexico City , Mexico
Volador Jr. (c) defeated TJP to retain the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship .
27
NJPW
New Japan Showdown
Week 4
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki and Lance Archer ) defeated Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston in a Philadelphia Street fight
Taped on October 17.
Stardom
Tokyo Super Wars
Tokyo, Japan
Utami Hayashishita (c) defeated Maika to retain the World of Stardom Championship
28
CF :
Noah The Best 2021
Tokyo, Japan
Katsuhiko Nakajima (Heavyweight) vs. Kenoh (National) ended in a time-limit draw in a Winner takes all match for the GHC Heavyweight Championship and GHC National Championship
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
December
Date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Main Event
Notes
3
The Crash MLW
Azteca
Tijuana, Baja California , Mexico
Pagano and Alexander Hammerstone defeated King Muertes and Taurus in aa Apocalypto match
4
AAA
Triplemanía Regia II
Monterrey , Mexico
El Hijo del Vikingo defeated Samuray del Sol , Jay Lethal , Bobby Fish , and Bandido in a five-way match for the vacant AAA Mega Championship
Was originally to be held on October 10, 2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
NWA
Hard Times
Atlanta , Georgia , United States
Trevor Murdoch (c) defeated Mike Knox to retain the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship
NJPW
Detonation
Week 1
Riverside, California
Hikuleo and Jay White defeated Yuya Uemura and Alex Zayne
Taped on November 15.
5
WWE :
WarGames
Orlando, Florida
Team 2.0 (Bron Breakker , Carmelo Hayes , Grayson Waller , and Tony D'Angelo) (with Trick Williams) defeated Team Black & Gold (Tommaso Ciampa , Johnny Gargano , Pete Dunne , and L. A. Knight ) in a WarGames match
NXT's first non-TakeOver event to air on PPV and the WWE Network since Halftime Heat in February 2019.
9
NJPW
Nemesis
Los Angeles, California
Christopher Daniels vs. Jay White
11
ROH
Final Battle
Baltimore, Maryland
Jonathan Gresham defeated Jay Lethal to win the vacant ROH World Championship
This was the final ROH event until at least April 2022 as ROH went on hiatus to restructure the promotion.
15
AEW
Winter Is Coming
Garland , Texas
MJF defeated Dante Martin in a singles match to win the AEW Dynamite Diamond Ring
Aired as a special episode of Dynamite .
17
WWE :
Christmas Eve SmackDown
Chicago, Illinois
Drew McIntyre and The New Day (Sir Kofi Kingston and King Woods ) defeated Madcap Moss and The Usos (Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso ) in a Miracle on 34th Street Fight
Aired on tape delay on December 24 as a special episode of SmackDown .
18
Impact
Throwback Throwdown II
Louisville, Kentucky
Santa Claus (Willie Mack ) defeated Sex Ferguson (Doc Gallows ) (c) by pinfall in a North Pole Street Fight for the IPWF International Commonwealth Television Championship
Stardom
Osaka Super Wars
Osaka, Japan
MaiHimePoi (Maika , Natsupoi , and Himeka ) (c) defeated Stars (Mayu Iwatani , Hazuki , and Koguma ) in a six-woman tag team ladder match to retain the ¥10 Million Unit Tournament briefcase and the Artist of Stardom Championship
22
AEW
Dynamite : Holiday Bash
Greensboro, North Carolina
CM Punk , Sting , and Darby Allin defeated The Pinnacle (MJF and FTR (Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood )) in a six-man tag team match
Aired live as a special episode of Dynamite . The first part of AEW's two-part Holiday Bash event.
Rampage : Holiday Bash
Cody Rhodes defeated Sammy Guevara (c) in a singles match to win the AEW TNT Championship
Aired on tape delay on December 25 as a special episode of Rampage . The second part of AEW's two-part Holiday Bash event.
25
CMLL
Espacial De Navidad
Mexico City , Mexico
Místico (c) defeated Averno to retain the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship
26
CF :
Never Mind 2021
Tokyo, Japan
Konosuke Takeshita (c) defeated Yuji Okabayashi to retain the KO-D Openweight Championship
29
Stardom
Dream Queendom
Tokyo, Japan
Syuri defeated Utami Hayashishita (c) in a winner-takes-all match to win the World of Stardom Championship and retain the SWA World Championship
AEW
Dynamite : New Year's Smash
Jacksonville, Florida
Adam Cole , Bobby Fish , and Kyle O'Reilly defeated Best Friends (Chuck Taylor and Trent Beretta ) and Orange Cassidy
Aired live as a special episode of Dynamite and was the show's final episode on TNT before the move to TBS on January 5, 2022. The first part of AEW's two-part New Year's Smash event, held as part of AEW's annual year-end party for talent and staff in Jacksonville.
Rampage : New Year's Smash
Cody Rhodes (c) defeated Ethan Page to retain the AEW TNT Championship
Aired on tape delay on December 31 as a special episode of Rampage . The second part of AEW's two-part New Year's Smash event.
31
WWE :
Best of 2021
TBD
A year-in-review episode, which aired on FS1 due to Fox's New Year's Eve programming.[ 6] WWE initially announced plans to air a live SmackDown for New Year's Eve in Charlotte, but these plans were scrapped.[ 7] [ 8] [ 6]
(c) – denotes defending champion(s)
Events affected by COVID-19
Canceled events
Scheduled date
Promotion(s)
Event
Location
Notes
May 15
NJPW
Wrestle Grand Slam in Yokohama Stadium
Yokohama, Japan
The event was originally planned to be rescheduled after being postponed due to the Japanese government's extension of its COVID-19 pandemic state of emergency , but was cancelled on June 16.[ 3]
June 20
WWE :
TakeOver: Dublin
Dublin , Ireland
This event was originally scheduled to take place on April 26, 2020. It was then rescheduled for October 25, 2020, but was again rescheduled for June 20, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic .[ 9] However, on April 30, the event was canceled.[ 10] This would have been the first NXT UK TakeOver event held outside the United Kingdom.
September 26
WWE :
Clash of Champions
Columbus, Ohio
The event was originally intended to be held on September 26 in Columbus, Ohio but that date was given to Extreme Rules . The event was quietly canceled for 2021.
December 19
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs
Rosemont, Illinois
The event was originally intended to be held on December 19 in Rosemont, Illinois , but was canceled in favor of an event called Day 1 , a pay-per-view occurring on January 1, 2022, in Atlanta, Georgia .[ 11]
Notable events
March 15 – AEW Dark: Elevation premiered on YouTube
March 18 – Under a new agreement between WWE and NBCUniversal , the WWE Network became a premium channel under Peacock in the United States. Following a brief transitional period, the standalone version of the WWE Network in the U.S. shut down on April 4. This did not affect the service outside of the U.S.
April 9 – All Elite Wrestling held its first-ever house show , "The House Always Wins."
May 30 – AEW Double or Nothing is the first major wrestling show to operate at full venue capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic
June 4 – Beginning with this day's episode of Viernes Espectacular , Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre resumed a live touring schedule after over a year of producing shows in Arena México without full capacity due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
July 7 – Beginning with this day's episode of AEW Dynamite , which aired as a special episode called "Road Rager ", All Elite Wrestling resumed a live touring schedule after over a year of producing shows from Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida , becoming the first major promotion to resume touring during the COVID-19 pandemic . It was also the first in AEW's "Welcome Back" tour, which continued with Fyter Fest (July 14 and 21) and concluded with Fight for the Fallen (July 28).
July 16 – Beginning with this day's episode of WWE SmackDown , WWE resumed a live touring schedule for their Raw and SmackDown brands after nearly a year of producing shows from the WWE ThunderDome bio-secure bubble .
August 13 – AEW Rampage premiered on TNT , marking the first weekly wrestling series to air Friday nights on a Turner channel since WCW Power Hour in 1994.
August 20 - CM Punk returned to professional wrestling for the first time in seven years on a live special episode of AEW Rampage titled The First Dance .
October 27 – Ring of Honor announced that they were going on hiatus until at least April 2022, and all talent and staff would be released from their contracts after Final Battle in December.
Accomplishments and tournaments
AAA
AEW
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
AEW Women's World Championship Eliminator Tournament
Ryo Mizunami
March 3
Defeated Nyla Rose in the tournament final to earn an AEW Women's World Championship match at Revolution , but was unsuccessful in winning the championship.
Casino Tag Team Royale
Death Triangle(Pac and Rey Fénix )
March 7
Fénix last eliminated Jungle Boy of Jurassic Express to earn an AEW World Tag Team Championship match for his team. Death Triangle received their match on the April 14 episode of Dynamite , but were unsuccessful in winning the championship.
Face of the Revolution Ladder Match
Scorpio Sky
Defeated Cody Rhodes , Penta El Zero Miedo , Lance Archer , Max Caster , and Ethan Page to earn an AEW TNT Championship match against Darby Allin on the March 10 episode of Dynamite , but was unsuccessful in winning the championship.
Casino Battle Royale (Men)
Jungle Boy
May 30
Last eliminated Christian Cage to earn an AEW World Championship match. Jungle Boy received his match on the June 26 episode of Dynamite , but was unsuccessful in winning the championship.
AEW World Tag Team Championship Eliminator Tournament
The Lucha Brothers (Penta El Zero Miedo and Rey Fénix )
August 25(aired August 27)
Defeated Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus ) in the tournament final to earn an AEW World Tag Team Championship match at All Out , where they defeated The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson ) in a steel cage match to win the championship.
Casino Battle Royale (Women)
Ruby Soho
September 5
Last eliminated Thunder Rosa to earn an AEW Women's World Championship match. Soho received her match on the September 22 special episode of Dynamite titled Grand Slam , but was unsuccessful in winning the championship.
Casino Ladder Match
Adam Page
October 6
Defeated Andrade El Idolo , Jon Moxley , Lance Archer , Matt Hardy , Orange Cassidy , and Pac to earn an AEW World Championship match at Full Gear , where Page defeated Kenny Omega to win the championship.
AEW World Championship Eliminator Tournament
Bryan Danielson
November 13
Defeated Miro in the tournament final to earn an AEW World Championship match on the special Winter Is Coming episode of Dynamite on December 15, but the match ended in a draw, resulting in a rematch scheduled for the January 5, 2022, episode of Dynamite .
Dynamite Dozen Battle Royale
MJF and Dante Martin
December 8
The cowinners of the 12-man battle royal face each other in a singles match for the AEW Dynamite Diamond Ring. MJF defeated Martin on the special Winter Is Coming episode of Dynamite on December 15 to win the AEW Dynamite Diamond Ring.
AJPW
CMLL
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
La Copa Junior VIP
Angel de Oro
March 26
Defeated Caristico in the tournament final to win the 2021 La Copa Junior VIP .
Copa Dinastías
Los Hermanos Panther (Blue Panther Jr. and Black Panther)
May 29
Defeated Volador Jr. and Flyer in the tournament final to win the Copa Dinastías.
Torneo Increíble de Parejas
Templario and Volador Jr.
June 25
Defeated Caristico and Virus in the tournament final to win the Torneo Increíble de Parejas.
Leyenda de Plata
Titán
July 30
Defeated Templario in the tournament final to win the 2021 Leyenda de Plata.
CMLL Universal Amazonas Championship
La Jarochita
August 27
Defeated Dark Silueta in the tournament final to win the 2021 CMLL Universal Amazonas Championship.
Copa Independencia
Volador Jr.
September 17
Defeated Gran Guerrero in the tournament final to win the 2021 Copa Independencia.
International Women's Gran Prix
Dark Silueta
October 8
Last eliminated Tsukushi to win for Team Mexico.
Rey del Inframundo championship
El Terrible
November 5
Defeated Atlantis Jr. in the tournament final to win the 2021 Rey del Inframundo championship.
Leyenda de Azul
El Soberano Jr.
November 26
Defeated Atlantis Jr. in the tournament final to win the 2021 Leyenda de Azul.
Gran Alternativa
El Coyote & Euforia
December 25
Defeated El Coyote & Euforia. in the tournament final to win the 2021 Gran Alternativa.
DDT
Dragon Gate
MLW
Gleat
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
UWF Rules Tournament
Takanori Ito
March 18
Defeated Yu Iizuka in the final to win the tournament.
G Prowrestling Tournament
Soma Watanabe
April 15
Defeated Kaz Hayashi in the final to win the tournament.
Impact
NJPW
NWA
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
Champions Series
Team Pope /Velvet Sky (Trevor Murdoch , Jennacide, Jax Dane , Cyon , and Colby Corino )
N/A(aired August 10)
Defeated Team Kamille /Austin Idol (Thom Latimer , Kenzie Paige, JR Kratos, Matthew Mims, and Sal Rinauro ) in the finals block to earn future title opportunities (or their team's protection in the captains' terms).
Murdoch would use his shot to win the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship from Nick Aldis in a Title vs. Career match at NWA 73 .
Jennacide used her shot with Paola Blaze to enter a match for The Hex 's NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship on the Hard Times 2 pre-show, but they were unsuccessful.
Cyon used his shot at Hard Times 2 against Tyrus for the NWA World Television Championship in a No Disqualification match with The Pope as special guest referee , but was unsuccessful.
Dane would use his shot to win the NWA National Championship from Anthony Mayweather at the Crockett Cup .
Pope used his opportunity to challenge Matt Cardona for the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship on the April 13, 2022 "SuperPowerrr" episode of NWA Powerrr , but was unsuccessful. *Corino used his shot for Homicide's NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship at NWA Alwayz Ready , but was unsuccessful.
Sky relinquished her opportunity to Tim Storm on the August 16, 2022, edition of Powerrr . However, on October 18, Storm was unable to use his opportunity in the time frame it had left, so a match between Chelsea Green and Angelina Love was scheduled that night, where Green pinned Love. Green would utilize the opportunity to enter the NWA World Women's Championship match with champion Kamille and KiLynn King at Hard Times 3 but was unsuccessful in winning the title.
NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship tournament
The Hex (Allysin Kay and Marti Belle )
August 28
Defeated KiLynn King and Red Velvet in the tournament final to win the reactivated NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship . The title has been inactive since 1984
NWA Women's Invitational Cup
Chelsea Green
Last eliminated Tootie Lynn in a gauntlet match to win the NWA Women's Invitational Cup trophy and an NWA World Women's Championship match at NWA 73 , but was unsuccessful
NWA World Tag Team Championship Eliminator Tournament
The End(Odinson and Parrow)
N/A(aired November 16)
Defeated Hawx Aerie (Luke Hawx and P. J. Hawx) in the tournament final to win an NWA World Tag Team Championship match at NWA Hard Times 2 , but were unsuccessful
ROH
Noah
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
N-1 Victory
Katsuhiko Nakajima
August 1
Defeated Kenoh to win the 2021 N-1 Victory.
Sendai Girls
WWE
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
Royal Rumble (Women)
Bianca Belair
January 31
Winner received their choice of a championship match for either the Raw Women's Championship , SmackDown Women's Championship , or NXT Women's Championship at WrestleMania 37 ; Belair last eliminated Rhea Ripley to win and chose her own brand's SmackDown Women's Championship, which she subsequently won from Sasha Banks at the event.
Royal Rumble (Men)
Edge
Winner received their choice of a championship match for either Raw 's WWE Championship , SmackDown 's Universal Championship , or the NXT Championship at WrestleMania 37 ; Edge from Raw last eliminated Randy Orton to win and chose the Universal Championship, but was unsuccessful in winning the title at the event.
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic (Women)
Dakota Kai and Raquel González
February 14
Defeated Ember Moon and Shotzi Blackheart in the tournament final to win the inaugural Women's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Trophy and a match for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship on the March 3 episode of NXT , but were unsuccessful in winning the championship due to a controversial finish. This resulted in them being named the inaugural holders of the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship .
Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic (Men)
MSK (Nash Carter and Wes Lee )
Defeated Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake and Zack Gibson ) in the tournament final to win the Men's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Trophy and a match for the NXT Tag Team Championship on the March 3 episode of NXT , but Lee suffered a storyline injury leading up to the match. They would later win a triple threat tag team match involving Grizzled Young Veterans and Legado del Fantasma (Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza ) at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver Night 1 to win the vacant titles (vacated after co-champion Danny Burch suffered a shoulder injury).
André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Jey Uso
April 2(aired April 9)
Last eliminated Shinsuke Nakamura to win the André the Giant Memorial Trophy.
Money in the Bank ladder match (Women)
Nikki A.S.H.
July 18
Defeated Asuka , Naomi , Alexa Bliss , Liv Morgan , Zelina Vega , Natalya , and Tamina for a women's world championship match contract. Nikki cashed in the contract on the July 19 episode of Raw and won the Raw Women's Championship from Charlotte Flair , who had just retained the title in a match against Rhea Ripley by disqualification.
Money in the Bank ladder match (Men)
Big E
Defeated Ricochet , John Morrison , Riddle , Drew McIntyre , Kevin Owens , King Nakamura , and Seth Rollins for a world championship match contract. Big E cashed in the contract on the September 13 episode of Raw and won the WWE Championship from Bobby Lashley , who had just retained the title in a match against Randy Orton .
King of the Ring tournament
Xavier Woods
October 21
Defeated Finn Bálor in the tournament final to become the King of the Ring; he subsequently changed his ring name to King Woods.
Queen's Crown tournament
Zelina Vega
Defeated Doudrop in the tournament final to become the inaugural Queen; she subsequently changed her ring name to Queen Zelina.
Zero1
Accomplishment
Winner(s)
Date won
Notes
Fire Festival
Takuya Sugawara
August 1
Defeated Ayato Yoshida to win the 2021 Fire Festival.
Title changes
AEW
CMLL
DDT
KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Championship/KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Championship
Incoming champion – Vacant
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
February 14
Shinya Aoki , Super Sasadango Machine , Antonio Honda , and Kazuki Hirata
Kawasaki Strong
Defeated Sanshiro Takagi , Danshoku Dino , Toru Owashi , and Makoto Oishi in a No disqualification match to win the vacant title.
March 28
Team Thoroughbred(Sanshiro Takagi , Yukio Naya , Chikara, and Yakan Nabe)
Judgement 2021: DDT 24th Anniversary
July 4
Team Olympian(Yoshiaki Yatsu , Akito , Hiroshi Yamato and Keigo Nakamura )
King of DDT 2021 Final!!
November 3
Toru Owashi , Antonio Honda , Kazuki Hirata and Yoshihiko
D-Oh Grand Prix 2021 II in Ota-ku
On January 3, 2022, the title reverted to its original form. Owashi, Honda, Hirata and Yoshihiko continued to defend the title as a four-man team.
Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship
Incoming champion – The Young Bucks ' autobiography Killing the Business
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
February 28
Saki Akai 's photo book "Lip Hip Shake "
Into The Fight
Six-way match also involving Saki Akai , Antonio Honda , Danshoku Dino , and Kazuki Hirata .
March 14
Keigo Nakamura
Day Dream Believer
Saki Akai
Pinned Keigo Nakamura in a six-person tag team match .
April 3
Kazuki Hirata
Peanuts Are A Good Source Of Protein
During a six-person tag team match , Hirata pinned his own partner Saki Akai to win the title.
Chiba-kun stuffed animal
Shortly after, Kazuki Hirata ran off backstage followed by referee Yukinori Matsui. A three-count was heard and DJ Nira walked out carrying a stuffed animal of Chiba-kun, the mascot of the Chiba city , which referee Matsui confirmed as the new champion.
Kazuki Hirata
Mao attacked the toy but before he could pin it, he was attacked by Hirata who then stole the pin to win the title back.
Antonio Honda
Pinned Kazuki Hirata to win the six-person tag team match and the title.
Saki Akai
After the match, pinned Antonio Honda to win the title.
April 25
Chris Brookes
Max Bump 2021 Tour in Nagano
During a tag team match , Brookes teamed with Toui Kojima to defeat Yukio Sakaguchi and Saki Akai which he pinned to win the title.
Saki Akai
After the match, pinned Chris Brookes to win the title back.
May 4
Chris Brookes
Max Bump 2021
This was also for Brookes' DDT Extreme Division Championship .
May 29
Antonio Honda
Audience Tour 2021 in Fukuoka
Saki Akai
May 30
Shinya Aoki
Audience Tour 2021 in Kumamoto
June 20
Kazuki Hirata
King of DDT 2021 2nd Round
Took place during a 9-person rumble rules match also involving Yukio Sakaguchi , Antonio Honda , Chris Brookes , Mad Paulie , Makoto Oishi , Saki Akai and Toru Owashi .
Shinya Aoki
July 25
Masayuki Okano
Kushiro Charity Sports Festival
Retired football player.
Danshoku Dino
September 12
Shunma Katsumata
Tenjin Wars 2021
Took place during a tag team match where Katsumata teamed with Yuki Ueno to successfully defend the KO-D Tag Team Championship against Danshoku Dino and Yuki Iino .
September 22
Harashima
Who's Gonna Top? Tour in Sapporo
Took place during a six-man tag team match where Harashima teamed with Toru Owashi and Naomi Yoshimura and defeated Shunma Katsumata , Yuki Ueno and Konosuke Takeshita .
October 23
Akito
Dramatic Dream Tour 2021 in Fuji
Pinned Harashima during Antonio Honda 's autograph signing session.
November 10
Hideki Okatani
D-Oh Grand Prix 2021 II in Shinjuku
Took place during a six-person tag team match . Okatani pinned his own partner Akito to win the title.
Kazuki Hirata
Took place during a six-person tag team match . Hirata pinned Hideki Okatani to win the match and the title.
Toru Owashi
November 21
Akito
D-Oh Grand Prix 2021 II in Korakuen Hall
December 5
Kazuki Hirata
D-Oh Grand Prix 2021 II the Final
Toru Owashi
December 31
Yuna Mizumori
ChocoPro #187
Defeated Toru Owashi in a janken game. This was a Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling event.
Toru Owashi
Impact
IWRG
IWRG Intercontinental Lightweight Championship
Incoming champion – Vacant
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
July 12
Vacated
—
Vacated when Baby Extreme left the promotion.
July 15
Puma de Oro
IWRG Thursday Night Wrestling
Defeated Aster Boy, Baby Star Jr., Lunatic Xtreme, Mr. Puma, Noicy Boy, Redimido and Sobredosis in an eight-way elimination match for the vacant title.
October 30
Aster Boy
IWRG Castillo Del Terror 2021
IWRG Rey del Aire Championship
Incoming champion – Dragón Bane
No title changes.
IWRG Rey del Ring Championship
Incoming champion – Demonio Infernal
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
March 21
Eterno
Guerreros de Acero
This was a Lucha de Apuestas Hair and Mask vs Titles tag team match between Eterno (hair) and El Hijo del Espectro Jr. (mask) against Fresero Jr. (Intercontinental Heavyweight) and Demonio Infernal (Rey del Ring). Eterno pinned Demonio Infernal to win the title.
May 9
Vacated
Rey del Ring
May 9
El Hijo de Canis Lupus
Rey del Ring
Defeated DMT Azul by DQ to win the vacant title. DMT Azul performed a piledriver (which is a banned move in Mexico), being DQ'd, so Hijo de Canis Lupus won the title.
AAA
MLW
NJPW
NWA
Noah
ROH
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship
Incoming champions – MexiSquad (Bandido , Flamita , and Rey Horus )
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
N/A(aired February 20)
Shane Taylor Promotions(Shane Taylor , Moses, and Kaun)
Ring of Honor Wrestling
The actual date the match took place is currently unknown. O'Shay Edwards would occasionally defend the titles under the Freebird Rule .
December 11
The Righteous(Bateman, Dutch, and Vincent )
Final Battle Pre-Show
Defeated Kaun, Moses, and O'Shay Edwards, who took Taylor's place, as Taylor would have a match the same night
The Crash
The Crash Cruiserweight Championship
Incoming champion – Oraculo
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
November 5
Dinámico
The Crash 10th Anniversary Show
This was a three-way match that also included Black Danger.
WWE
– Raw
– SmackDown
– NXT
– NXT UK
– Unbranded
Raw and SmackDown
Raw and SmackDown each have a world championship, a secondary championship, a women's championship, and a male tag team championship.
NXT
NXT UK
Unbranded
These titles are not brand exclusive. The colors indicate the home brand of the champions (names without a color are former WWE wrestlers, Hall of Famers , or non-wrestlers).
WWE 24/7 Championship
Incoming champion – Angel Garza
Date
Winner
Event/Show
Note(s)
January 4
R-Truth
Raw Legends Night
Pinned Angel Garza backstage after Garza had been scared by The Boogeyman .
January 31
Alicia Fox
Royal Rumble
During the women's Royal Rumble match , R-Truth ran out to the ring. Several other wrestlers attempted to attack Truth. During the distraction, Fox rolled up Truth in the ring to win the title.
R-Truth
After Alicia Fox was eliminated from the women's Royal Rumble match , Truth pinned her outside the ring with a rollup to win back the title.
Peter Rosenberg
Rosenberg, who had served as a panelist during the Royal Rumble Kickoff pre-show, rolled up R-Truth by the panelist table to win the title. Rosenberg is a radio personality who often serves as a panelist during the pre-shows of WWE pay-per-views. Eighth non-wrestler to win the title.
February 1
R-Truth
The Michael Kay Show
During the live remote broadcast, which aired on the YES Network and WEPN Radio , Truth pinned Peter Rosenberg in the latter's hotel room.
February 6
Doug Flutie
Celebrity Flag Football Game
At Clearwater Beach during halftime of the game, which aired on ESPNEWS , Flutie rolled up R-Truth to win the title. Flutie is a former National Football League , Canadian Football League , and United States Football League player. Ninth non-wrestler to win the title.
R-Truth
Shortly after, Truth snuck up from behind and rolled up Doug Flutie to win back the title, which also aired on ESPNEWS .
February 15
Akira Tozawa
Raw
Following a scuffle, Tozawa pinned R-Truth backstage.
Bad Bunny
After witnessing Akira Tozawa win the title, Damian Priest attacked Tozawa and allowed guest star Bad Bunny to pin him and become champion. Bad Bunny is a rapper, singer, and songwriter. 10th non-wrestler to win the title.
March 15
R-Truth
Raw
Bad Bunny relinquished the title to R-Truth in exchange for Stone Cold Steve Austin memorabilia.
March 21
Joseph Average
Fastlane
Old Spice representative Joseph Average accidentally pinned R-Truth backstage during an Old Spice advertisement after a shelf full of deodorants fell over. Joseph Average was portrayed by NXT and WWE Performance Center trainee Rik Bugez.
R-Truth
Pinned Old Spice representative Joseph Average with a roll up to win back the title.
N/A(aired April 19)
Akira Tozawa
N/A
Pinned R-Truth in the backstage area of Tropicana Field . This title change was shown on WWE's YouTube channel. The actual date the title change took place is unknown. WWE's official title history currently does not recognize this reign.
Joseph Average
Pinned Akira Tozawa in the backstage area of Tropicana Field . This title change was shown on WWE's YouTube channel. The actual date the title change took place is unknown. WWE's official title history currently does not recognize this reign.
R-Truth
Pinned Joseph Average in the backstage area of Tropicana Field . This title change was shown on WWE's YouTube channel. The actual date the title change took place is unknown. WWE's official title history currently does not recognize this reign.
May 17
Akira Tozawa
Raw
Pinned R-Truth backstage in a stairwell.
June 29
Drew Gulak
Raw
Pinned Akira Tozawa at ringside during a battle royal.
R-Truth
Pinned Drew Gulak at ringside during a battle royal.
Akira Tozawa
Pinned R-Truth at ringside during a battle royal
July 19
Reginald
Raw
Pinned Akira Tozawa in the ring after Tozawa had been chased to the ring by other wrestlers. His ring name was changed to Reggie on July 23.
November 8
Drake Maverick
Raw
This was an official watch where Maverick pinned Reggie in-ring to win the title.
Akira Tozawa
Corey Graves
Byron Saxton
Drake Maverick
Reggie
November 22
Cedric Alexander
Raw
This was an official match where Alexander pinned Reggie in-ring to win the title.
Dana Brooke
Awards and honors
WWE
WWE Hall of Fame
Impact
Impact Hall of Fame
Debuts
Retirements
Deaths
New Jack
Paul Orndorff
Bobby Eaton
Daffney
Blackjack Lanza
See also
References
^ "NJPW And AJPW Holding Giant Baba Anniversary Show In February 2021" . fightful.com . Retrieved January 31, 2021 .
^ "Wrestle Grand Slam in Yokohama Stadium, Tokyo Dome postponed 【WGS】" . New Japan Pro-Wrestling . May 7, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2021 .
^ a b "Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome Set for July 25; Shingo Ibushi Main Event【WGS】" . New Japan Pro-Wrestling . May 7, 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2021 .
^ "NJPW, AJPW, Noah, Six More Companies Coming Together for 'LEGACY' 70th Anniversary Show" . lastwordonsports.com . 18 June 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2021 .
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^ Fallece "Super Genie" Melissa Coates a los 50 años
^ Chris Youngblood of famed Romero clan dies
^ Paul Orndorff, WWE Hall of Famer Known as ‘Mr. Wonderful,’ Dies at 71
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