Scheduled to headline UFC Fight Night in Sacramento, Paige VanZant seeks to succeed both as an entertainer and a fighter worthy of respect in the sport. (4:02)

A handful of potential UFC stars are on deck Saturday at UFC Fight Night inside Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California.

UFC Fight Night: VanZant-Waterson Where: Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California

When: Saturday

TV: FOX, 8 p.m. ET

Strawweight Paige VanZant possesses all the intangibles of a breakout, mainstream athlete, but at 22, she has plenty of room to grow. She'll face a real test from former Invicta FC titleholder Michelle Waterson.

In the co-main event, Sage Northcutt and Mickey Gall will fight over a "top prospect" tag in the welterweight division. ESPN.com is here to take you deeper into the fights with our UFC Sacramento Cheat Sheet.

Paige VanZant (7-2) vs. Michelle Waterson (13-4), strawweights

Strawweight Michelle Waterson, right, looks for her second UFC win in as many fights when she faces Paige VanZant on Saturday. Getty Images

Odds as of Dec. 14: VanZant -115; Waterson -105

For PVZ, nothing gets in the way of fighting

It has been a unique 2016 for VanZant, who took an extended break during the first half of the year to appear on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."

According to Urijah Faber, VanZant's mentor at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, there was a slight adjustment period after the show, when VanZant returned to the daily grind of gym life.

"It definitely took some getting used to, coming back here where no one is looking twice at her," Faber said. "Getting back to the grimy life of a fighter, it's like you get pulled out of someone bringing your coffee to you, making sure your makeup is OK, to, 'Oh yeah, this is what I do.' I think there was a little bit of a shell shock."

Apparently, that adjustment period didn't have a negative effect on VanZant, who scored the most prolific knockout of her career with a jumping switch kick against Bec Rawlings in August.

VanZant still has multiple irons in the fire. She turned down a movie role to prepare for this fight against Waterson and is currently writing an autobiography. Her manager, Mike Roberts, says the No. 1 focus still is -- and will remain -- her fighting career.

"Right now, nothing gets in the way of fighting," Roberts said. "Anything she does has to be done in between fights, only when it makes sense. She wants full training camps for these fights."

Waterson versus the world

It seems like the world has been telling Waterson to give up on fighting for some time now.

In 2014, Waterson nearly put her career on hold because the promotion she was with, Invicta FC, wasn't offering her fights and she wanted to have a second child. (Her daughter, Araya, was born in 2011). She eventually chose to continue fighting and was rewarded with a UFC contract and debut fight in 2015.

Since that debut, a victory, Waterson has been relegated to the sideline. Multiple bouts fell through due to injury, including a fractured hand in August. It has been a trying few years, to say the least.

"I just thought the world had it out for me," Waterson said. "It didn't want me to succeed. Every time I came up for air, I plummeted down even deeper. That's how I felt.

"I have multiple halves. I'm not just a fighter. I'm also a mother and a wife and those things pull at me. When they do, those are the only times I feel conflicted about my career. But fortunately I have a very supportive husband who is very understanding of my passion in martial arts, who believes in my abilities and what I can accomplish."

Waterson was so eager to return to action, she says negotiations for this fight began before she even received medical clearance on her hand. Although she has missed significant time, she has had the benefit of multiple fight camps at Jackson Wink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

"It almost feels like I've had a super camp," Waterson said. "I think Paige has come to the sport at the right place and the right time, but as a fighter, I think she's still growing and learning her own style. That can make her dangerous because you don't know what to expect, but I'm ready for anything."

Paige VanZant rebounded nicely from her 2015 loss to Rose Namajunas, right, by stopping Bec Rawlings in August. Ed Mulholland for ESPN

Key stats

Paige VanZant:

7-2 record in MMA career (4-1 in UFC)

7-0 in career vs fighters outside top 10 in current UFC strawweight rankings (0-2 vs top-10 fighters); Waterson is ranked 11th

Lands 3.5 significant strikes per minute in UFC career (allows 2.5 significant strikes per minute)

Michelle Waterson:

13-4 record in MMA career (1-0 in UFC)

Won 7 of past 8 fights (1 decision win, 4 submissions, 2 TKO)

Outstruck Angela Magana 102-19 on total strikes in UFC debut (according to FightMetric)

Breakdown

Question No. 1: How much weight does "experience" carry in this fight?

VanZant has a relatively good amount of it for a 22-year-old, but she has nothing on Waterson, 30.

Expect that to show in multiple aspects of the fight, particularly in grappling exchanges. VanZant grapples with youthful recklessness. Her eagerness to force positions will sometimes place her in bad spots. And against a seasoned competitor like Waterson, who has eight submission finishes in her career, that's dangerous.

VanZant is learning, and we saw that in her last bout. The finish was obviously great, but the time leading up to it was telling as well. Rather than rely on her motor and tenacity to create and win scrambles, VanZant stayed on the outside of Rawlings, maintained her patience and showed a willingness to stick to the game plan. It wasn't always pretty, but that's what development looks like.

Sometimes, styles match up in a way that makes it easier to predict where a fight will end up. This isn't one of those times. Expect both strawweights to bring a little bit of everything, exchange kicks on the outside, test each other's strengths in the clinch and wind up on the ground from time to time. If I had to pick one area that decides this fight, it's who wins on the ground.

Prediction: Waterson by third-round submission (rear-naked choke).

You make the call: