Eight belts will be on the line Thursday night at Treasure Island Resort and Casino as Brutaal Genesis presents "A Night of Title Fights."

Matchmaker Nick Gamst said it's the biggest night in the history of his organization as he prepares to crown champions in eight different weight classes.

"I'm excited," Gamst said. "As far as matchmaking goes, this was the easiest card I've ever put together because I was able to just go straight down our rankings and match up the best two guys at each weight. It should be a great night; I'm really excited for these fights."

The fights are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Thursday, with doors opening at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15, $30 and $50 and are available through the Treasure Island website at www.treasureislandcasino.com.

Gamst will hand out belts at 135 pounds, 145, 155, 165, 175, 200, 220 and women's 135. The women's belt will be an interim title as Aimee Slama recovers from a neck injury.

First up is the 135-pound title, and that bout will see Andy Slagle (7-2) of Anytime Fight Club square off against Iowa's Adam Packers (10-1), who trains with Team Insanity.

Both Slagle and Packer are ground specialists, though Gamst said both guys aren't afraid to stand and trade punches. Slagle is coming down from 145 pounds, while Packer generally walks at 135.

"They're both good ground fighters, even though they have contrasting styles on the ground," Gamst said. "Slagle is a power guy. He's very strong. Packer is more of a finesse guy. His transitions are very slick and everything he does on the ground is smooth. I have a feeling whoever gets the takedown in this fight is going to be right where they want to be.

Rochester's Scott Ball will put his perfect 3-0 record on the line when he battles Stefan Slinger for the 145-pound belt.

Ball is a former, well-known pro boxer from the Rochester area. He's currently training with Aaron Vold at the Fourth Street Gym.

Slinger is 9-2 and trains with Team Gladiator out of Mason City, Iowa. He also has a standup background with karate and kickboxing.

"They're both standup fighters, so we could see fireworks," Gamst said. "They don't train with any stud grapplers or anything, so I'd say their ground games are about the same. I've seen Scotty pick some really good fighters apart on their feet. He's a great boxer. It's one of those fights that you hope it stays standing. That could be really fun. The one thing Stefan definitely has going for him are his kicks. He loves to kick, and that will be something new for Scotty to deal with. If Scotty is planted heavy on that front foot, he's going to be in trouble."

In a fight of the night candidate, current Brutaal Genesis 155-pound champion Dan Moret will put his belt and his undefeated 6-0 record on the line against fellow undefeated lightweight Lance Harding (3-0).

Moret trains with Mankato Martial Arts and the Mankato MMA Club, while Harding trains at Ambition with Joey Clark and Mike Reilly.

Moret is a beast at 155; he'll be the stronger fighter, but Harding has been working a great deal on his technique and said in an interview late last week that he'd like to keep the fight standing. Both fighters have displayed solid ground skills in previous fights. Harding has won all three of his fights by submission.

"This is the fight I probably like the most," Gamst said. "Harding has really good submissions. And Dan is a tough, tough dude. He's a really hard worker. If this was a 25-minute fight, I'd probably give it to Dan for sure. But as it is, I think this should be a war, and I can see these guys battling for three rounds and going to the judges' scorecards."

Moret holds a pair of wins over Evan Johnson, who only has losses against Moret. "Evan Johnson's a good fighter, too," Gamst said. "Moret is a huge 155er. He cuts quite a bit, and I know Lance doesn't cut much at all. We'll see if that makes a difference or not."

At 165 pounds, Chris Hassing (7-3) and Corey Grzybowski (7-3) will meet for the belt. Hassing trains at several different camps, including Anytime Fight Club and Ambition. Grzybowski trains with a crew down in Stewartville, near Rochester.

This was a fight that Gamst said was initially for No. 1 contender Eric Yngsdal, but Yngsdal had work and school conflicts.

"Obviously, I would have liked to have Eric in there, but these two guys are like Nos. 3 and 4 in the rankings. Plus I think Eric is going to 155," Gamst said. "Both of these guys are veteran amateur fighters. Corey has already had a lot of tough fights, and he's been right there in those fights. Chris and Corey are both probably better on their feet. This fight has a lot of potential. I have a feeling these guys are going to want to stand and bang."

At 175 pounds, a pair of undefeated fighters will battle it out. Corey Anderson (5-0) of Anytime Fight Club will face off against Ryan Harmdiercks (6-0) of Iowa's Team Striker.

No. 1-ranked Justin Kratzke was scheduled to fight for this belt, but he's out with a knee injury. So Anderson stepped up in his place.

Both Anderson and Harmdiercks have wrestling backgrounds. Gamst called this another fight of the night contender.

"Harmdiercks is from Iowa and all the guys from Team Striker are scrappy, tough dudes. They all know how to wrestle and they're all athletic," Gamst said. "Corey was a great high school wrestler in Wisconsin. Both are chiseled out of granite. I have a feeling their wrestling will equal out and we'll get a nice standup war."

Ambition's Ben Smith will look to move to 3-0 and bring home the 200-pound championship belt when he takes on Nick Milsap (5-1) of Team Insanity.

Gamst said Smith is a small 200-pounder, while Milsap used to weigh as much as 250 pounds.

"Ben is a super, super strong kid, so I don't think the size will be a problem," Gamst said. "Ben loves to take people down and be on top. Milsap is a blue belt in jiu-jitsu, so he has some skills down there. He's actually a former cop. I know he's done some jiu-jitsu tournaments down in Iowa and done well. Both are powerful punchers."

David Bowser (3-1) and Justin Rheaume (5-0) will fight for the 220-pound strap.

"Both of these guys have told me they're working super hard for this fight, so I expect them both to come in in great shape," Gamst said. "Bowser is an older guy, but he's chiseled out of granite. Justin is a younger, taller guy. He hits really hard. This fight has some potential, too. Both are very capable of knocking each other out."

Ambition's Melissa Schiro (2-0) will fight for the women's interim title. Gamst still is working to find a replacement for the current champion Slama.

Gamst also has two non-title fights on the card. At 135 pounds, Aruan Campa will take on Jovon Myles. Gamst said the winner of that fight could face the winner of the 135-pound title fight down the road. Finally, Cody Sheehy will face an opponent to be determined at 145 pounds.

NIGHT OF TITLE FIGHTS

Treasure Island, Red Wing, Aug. 26

TITLE FIGHTS

135 - Andy Slagle (7-2) vs. Adam Packer (10-1).

145 - Scott Ball (3-0) vs. Stefan Slinger (9-2).

155 - Dan Moret (6-0) vs. Lance Harding (3-0).

165 - Chris Hassing (7-3) vs. Corey Grzybowski (7-3).

175 - Corey Anderson (5-0) vs. Ryan Harmdiercks (6-0).

200 - Ben Smith (2-0) vs. Nick Milsap (5-1).

220 - David Bowser (3-1) vs. Justin Rheaume (5-0).

Women's 135 - Melissa Schiro (2-0) vs. TBD. * - For the interim title; winner will fight Aimee Slama when she returns from injury.

NON-TITLE FIGHTS

145 - Cody Sheehy vs. TBD.

135 - Aruan Campa vs. Jovon Myles.