To say that this week's King of the Cage mixed martial arts bouts at the Coeur d'Alene Casino will be off the chain might be an understatement.

As King of the Cage presents "Unleashed" on Thursday night starting at 7 p.m., they'll do it without the guy that has headlined the previous five fights.

UNLIKE PREVIOUS fights, where former North Idaho College wrestler and mixed martial arts fighter since 2001 Trevor Prangley was in the evening's main event, he'll be sitting out this card.

"It's a little tricky, but we've found a lot of local talent to come out," said Kevin Martin, event promoter and manager of Trevor Prangley's American Kickboxing Academy. "There's a strong group of fighters in this area.

It is also likely that the next match for Prangley, 41 - either in May or August - could be his last match.

"It has been scheduled this way for a while," Martin said. "We've been talking with him that the next one with him headlining could be his last. He's getting to the point where he's thinking about retiring, so the next one will be special."

He is currently the King of the Cage light heavyweight champion.

"Trevor has been the guy that has brought MMA to a high level in this area," Martin said. "Right now, we're still going over names" of potential opponents.

Jacob Harkness of Spokane is one of those rumored to oppose Prangley when the time comes.

"Jacob has done a heck of a job and is a tremendous athlete," Martin said. "He deserves a shot and should be a good matchup."

FEATURED IN Thursday's main event will be Spokane native Mike Hanks against Dave "The Pain Train" Mazany of Anchorage, Alaska.

Harkness will face Jaris Beirer of Billings, Mont., in the other main event, with six professional fights and four amateur bouts.

Will Noland of Post Falls will also compete, as will Sandpoint's Skyler Bonner against David Winter in other professional fights.

"To bring out some of that future talent, it should be a good thing," Martin said. "Both Mike and Dave train out of Las Vegas, and we're looking for big things from Mike. He's definitely going to have a title fight at the next show. Getting some of those local guys out here will only help build them to a bigger audience."

Thursday's card will be the first of four events scheduled at the Casino this year, with others scheduled for May, August and November.

"I think King of the Cage has impressed with the Casino," Martin said. "We've been able to sell out all six fights and I think they've been good with how we've handled the event."

As of Tuesday, they're approaching another sellout.

"We're getting close," Martin said. "We can fit anywhere from 1,200 to 1,300, so I know we're getting close."

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d'Alene Press. He can be reached by telephone at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at jelliott@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter at JEPressSports.