Teams, Brackets Set for 2015 MRDA Championships

The Men’s Roller Derby Association has released its final rankings for this season, and with that comes confirmation of the teams eligible to play in River City Rumble, the 2015 MRDA Championships in St. Louis, Mo. For the first time, ten men’s teams will contest the two-day tournament, this year happening October 17 and 18.

The rankings and the tournament seeds are topped by the reigning 3-year undefeated and 3-time reigning MRDA champion Your Mom Men’s Roller Derby, seeking to extend both of those streaks. The St. Louis Gatekeepers, the powerful host squad, is seeded second, with the former 2-time men’s champion New York Shock Exchange in the third slot.

mrda-championships-2015-bracket
The full bracket, with consolation games. Each team will be guaranteed a minimum of two games in the two-day tournament.

All of the teams in the top eight of the MRDA rankings have accepted their invites to championships and will fill in the top eight seeds of the bracket. In previous years, that’s all we would be seeing play for the title. But this year, there’s room for two more teams. They are not all in the MRDA top 10, however, as some teams did not accept their invites.

MRDA 2015 Fall Rankings
1. Your Mom
2. St. Louis
3. New York
4. Texas
5. Puget Sound
6. Southern Discomfort (UK)
7. Portland
8. Magic City
9. Tyne and Fear (UK)
10. San Diego
11. South Wales (UK)
12. Mass Maelstrom
13. Arizona
14. Minnesota

Ranked #9 by the MRDA, after having shot up eight places since the last rankings period in the spring, Tyne and Fear Roller Derby of Newcastle, England will not be participating in St. Louis. (Presumably, for inability to afford the trip across the Atlantic on relatively short notice.) This moves the 10th-ranked San Diego Aftershocks, who had just gained MRDA membership earlier this year, into the #9 seed.

Ranked #11, the South Wales Silures had an opportunity to become the last team in, and second from the U.K; they too declined to participate. (Presumably for the same reasons as Tyne and Fear.) The #12 and #13 teams, Mass Maelstrom and Arizona Men’s Roller Derby, also had to sit out of the tournament this year despite it being much closer to home for them.

Minnesota Men’s Roller Derby, perhaps a little lucky to receive an invite to Champs despite being ranked 14th, have nonetheless accepted and will come into St. Louis as the #10 and final seed.

With the rankings and the bracket the MRDA has also announced it is continuing its partnership with the WFTDA to bring the live and free webcast of the men’s championship weekend on WFTDA.tv. Coverage will begin at 10 a.m. ET on October 17.

Roller Derby Notes will have full coverage of the 2015 MRDA Championships next month, with a preview of the tournament during the lead-up to the event and live commentary and insight on the @derbynotes Twitter feed during every game. Don’t miss it!