This past Saturday, the Gotham Girls Roller Derby Championships took place between the Manhattan Mayhem and the Queens of Pain. This roller derby experience was very much like a independent wrestling show, taking place in a gym and having bleachers filled with friends, families and roller derby enthusiasts. The skaters and, even the referees have derby names like Annie Frankenstein and William Skatespeare, respectively. My personal favorite is number 12 on the Manhattan Mayhem: Bruizin’ Brody, named (hopefully) after Bruiser Brody:

The championship was the most competitive 60 minutes of derby action I’ve ever seen. Filled with hard hitting action and lead changes, it came down to the final minutes of gameplay. Unfortunately, Brody and her team fell short to the Queens of Pain, who were undefeated all season. But the former two time GGRD champions left everything on the track and definitely inspired others to become passionate fan of the sport.

Another wrestling related connection came at intermission: there was a performance by the all female accordion group, the Main Squeeze Orchestra. They performed television theme songs and Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” while wearing, hats, hairpieces or wrestling masks.

It was all around awesome. Check out the Gotham Girls Roller Derby website for more information. Maybe the Queens of Pain can continue their undefeated streak through another season.