(This story originally appeared on usatoday.com.)

Young, good-looking and hyper-athletic, Sage Northcutt and Paige VanZant represent something unusual in a world of MMA, where cauliflower ears, black eyes and scars are badges of honor.

Northcutt, 19, and VanZant, 21, may look like potential leads in a CW teen drama, but both have proven their fighting bona fides in the UFC’s famed octagon. Even with their early success, some seem to have trouble taking them seriously.

“Maybe it’s the hair,” Northcutt told USA TODAY Sports and MMAjunkie. “Maybe it’s because I’m smiling all the time. Maybe that’s not intimidating. I don’t know. I like being happy.”

The UFC faces new challenges in bringing along these young fighters. Past superstars in the promotion include pro wrestler turned fighting wall-of-meat Brock Lesnar, grizzled and cauliflower-eared Randy Couture, mohawked and potbellied Chuck Liddell and sneering bad boy Tito Ortiz. The only fighter to enter the octagon with the kind of marketability the young guns possess is now-former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. But even Rousey entered the UFC after establishing herself in other promotions and with an Olympic bronze medal in judo in her back pocket.

That means walking the tightrope between making fights that force the young prospects to grow as fighters while not drowning them in waters too deep for their current skill levels. And it will have to do this in a climate where resentment can spike at the slightest feeling a fighter is being handled with kid gloves.

Northcutt made his UFC debut after being “discovered” by UFC President Dana White on the pilot for his online reality show, “Looking for a Fight.” It took him 57 seconds to run through 13-fight veteran Francisco Trevino at UFC 192. While the October debut was impressive, Northcutt’s backflip during a post-victory celebration is what went viral.

Some fighters weren’t impressed, however. Fellow lightweight Kevin Lee called Northcutt a “rich, privileged white boy” during an appearance on MMAjunkie Radio.

Northcutt (6-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) faces Cody Pfister (12-4-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) at tonight’s at UFC Fight Night 80 event. The show streams on Fight Pass, the UFC’s digital network. VanZant (6-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC), meanwhile, has a bigger task ahead of her, main eventing the same card against fellow strawweight Rose Namajunas (3-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC). Namajunas, 23, is not far removed from a similar situation.

Namajunas was heavily hyped coming off of her run on the UFC’s flagship reality show, “The Ultimate Fighter.” At one point, White claimed he found the “next Ronda Rousey” on the reality competition, a reference to Namajunas.

After picking up three submission wins in the 16-woman field to make it to the show’s tournament final, Namajunas suffered a lopsided loss to Carla Esparza in a bout to crown the first 115-pound champion in UFC history.

It’s that kind of reality check that VanZant looks to avoid.

Each of VanZant’s outings has been more impressive than the last. She fights with an aggressive style that belies her omnipresent smile, beach-ready hair (which VanZant said the UFC forbade her from shaving to donate to a young cancer patient) and quiet public demeanor.

“She has all the attributes of a little rock star,” White said after VanZant’s most recent win. “She’s got a great personality, and she’s absolutely relentless when she fights.”

Strawweight is not a deep division, but there’s a world of difference between the level of fighters VanZant has faced and the cream of the crop in the division, including dominant champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk. UFC officials know they need to be gentle with VanZant’s development while also keeping her front and center in the media. She’s already a star, after all.

Northcutt has the luxury of fighting in a lightweight division with nearly 100 fighters on the UFC roster (by comparison, VanZant’s division has 33). This makes it easier to bring him along slowly, but fans and other fighters scrutinize every one of performances and statements. The resentment will – and already has – come.

All VanZant and Northcutt can do to quiet the doubters is keep winning. Do that, and the UFC’s investment will pay off big time, VanZant knows.

“I plan on beating Rose on Dec. 10,” she said. “Then whoever the UFC calls me with, I’m going to be ready for.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 80, check out the UFC Events section of the site.