WORLEY — There was no shortage of bad blood leading up to the King of the Cage world light heavyweight championship fight between Coeur d’Alene’s Trevor Prangley and Huntington Beach, Calif., fighter Tony Lopez on Thursday night at the Coeur d’Alene Casino.

So much so the fight was billed “It’s Personal,” and it was evident to a packed house of MMA fans that a couple of seasoned fighters were all too happy to enter the cage and settle a score.

Ultimately, one mistake proved the difference, as it often does in MMA, when Prangley slapped an arm bar on Lopez to secure a tap out submission at 3 minutes, 41 seconds of round two. Prangley (30-9-1) won his seventh consecutive fight, while Lopez (32-12) has now lost his last four, starting with a controversial loss to Prangley in December of 2012.

The rematch started fast, with the 6-foot-5 Lopez and Prangley trading blows, before Prangley took the fight to the mat and controlled the round. In the second round, Prangley caught a Lopez kick and took him to the mat, where he landed some hammer fists.

Lopez was finally able to break free briefly, right before Prangley grabbed his hand and locked him in an arm bar to end the fight.

“He stuck it (hand) out to try to get up; it was like a gift, I couldn’t say no to it,” described Prangley, who felt he controlled the action. “I landed the bigger blows. All the years of experience paid off on that one.”

After the fight, Prangley bowed to Lopez in a show of respect between two decorated King of the Cage fighters battling for the belt. He told the crowd afterward that win or lose, the personal stuff goes away when the fight ends.

Nonetheless, the pre-fight vitriol and dislike was evident as the previous fight ended in the fourth round with a controversial knee strike by Lopez to Prangley. There was no disputing the ending of the second go-round.

“Nobody wants to lose when there’s smack being talked,” said Prangley, a former North Idaho College wrestler who runs a kickboxing academy in Coeur d’Alene. “There is a lot of pressure fighting in front of your home crowd. I’m happy that it’s over with, win or lose.”

Lopez said Prangley was a lot stronger and more prepared than he expected.

“I came in underestimating him from the first fight, and that was my downfall,” said Lopez, whose corner yelled about his hand right before Prangley ended the fight. “I was trying to escape out of the bottom and left myself open. I tried to pull it (hand) back in. He latched on and got a good grip and it was over.”

Prangley said patience was the key against Lopez, a crafty and lengthy fighter with a well-rounded game.

“I knew he was in it for the long haul,” said Prangley of Lopez. “He doesn’t push the pace.”

As to what the future holds, Prangley said he’ll fight whoever they put in front of him. For now the belt stays in Coeur d’Alene, and it will take some doing to remove it from its current owner.

Prangley has beaten the likes of Keith Jardine and lost to the likes of Roger Gracie in a distinguished career that included fights for UFC, Bellatore, Strikeforce and now King of the Cage. He’s happy with where he’s at in his career, and enjoys fighting at the Casino.

“My aspirations for reaching the top of the sport are right here,” said Prangley. “This is where I intend to finish my career.”