Paige VanZant vs Rose Namajunas UFC Fight Night 80: Date, time, weigh-in, TV info and more... all you need to know

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Paige VanZant headlines her first main event on Thursday night when she takes on Rose Namajunas in the battle of the pocket rockets at UFC Fight Night 80 in Las Vegas.

Unbeaten in three UFC bouts, 5ft 4in VanZant - nicknamed 12 Gauge - is on the fast track to a shot at Joanna Jedrzejczyk for the organisation's strawweight title.

Her fellow American Namajunas is ominously dubbed Thug and The Riveter and won't be a pushover with a win and a defeat to her name so far at the pinnacle of their sport.

Here is all you need to know about their fight and the bill.  

Rose Namajunas (left) and Paige VanZant (right) face off after their weigh-in ahead of UFC Fight Night 80

Both Namajunas and VanZant weighed in at 115.5lbs for their fight in Las Vegas on Thursday

Namajunas flexes her muscles after meeting the criteria for their hugely anticipated strawweight contest

VanZant points to the heavens after making weight in front of the cameras at MGM Grand Garden Arena 

What's at stake?

This is VanZant's biggest fight to date but Namajunas has had a crack at UFC gold before when she was submitted by Carla Esparza. 

If 23-year-old Namajunas can win, she would derail the VanZant hype train, but victory for the 21-year-old favourite would catapult her closer to her dream of becoming the youngest ever UFC champion.

There's no doubt that whoever wins this fight will firmly assert themselves into the title picture, arguably as the next in line after Brazilian Claudia Gadelha gets her crack at Poland's Jedrzejczyk.

Namajunas has been in the big time and fallen to Carla Esparza, but this is VanZant's biggest fight to date

Paige VanZant works on a high kick at an open training session for fans in Las Vegas this week 

Her opponent, Rose Namajunas, showed her moves on Tuesday ahead of their fight on Thursday

 Namajunas has a win and a loss in her two UFC fights while VanZant is unbeaten after three UFC bouts

Where is it?

The bout takes place inside The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, a luxury resort casino and hotel on the Las Vegas Strip around the corner from the MGM Grand where Conor McGregor and Jose Aldo do battle on Saturday night.

When is it?

This will be a rare Thursday night event for the UFC, taking place on December 10 and kicking off three nights of more than 30 fights, culminating in UFC 194 on Saturday headlined by McGregor and Aldo.

Where can I watch it?

The fights will be streamed live on UFC Fight Pass (ufc.tv) with the main card starting at 3am GMT.

VanZant, 21, is aiming to get a shot at Joanna Jedrzejczyk to become the youngest ever champion in the UFC

VanZant shows off a spectacular throw on her training partner as the world's media watch on with interest

Sporting a close cropped haircut, Namajunas aims to derail the hype train surrounding her opponent 

What are their fight records?

VanZant is 3-0 in the UFC and has a record of 6-1 as a professional in MMA. Namajunas is 4-2 as a professional and 1-1 in the UFC. She also won three times on The Ultimate Fighter reality TV show, but they are not counted in her record.

What have they had to say about each other?

They've said plenty, and most of it quite respectful. Namajunas says VanZant deserves the hype around her. 

‘She’s the whole package and she’s very exciting,’ said Namajunas. ‘She’s a formidable opponent and I’m definitely not taking her lightly.’

VanZant knows Namajunas is has a good all-round game but is confident of victory on Thursday.

‘Obviously she’s a great submission artist, she has a good stand-up game and I’m not going to be able to take her easily in any area of the fight,’ said the 21-year-old.

‘I just have to go out there and beat her.’

VanZant has plenty of respect for Namajunas and is aware of her strengths on the ground and standing up 

Namajunas describes VanZant as 'formidable', saying 'she’s the whole package and she’s very exciting'

Do they have any previous history?

Not really, they have some shared past opponents, though. They’ve both lost unanimous decisions to Tecia Torres and both have won by submission over Alex Chambers.

When is the weigh-in?

The weigh-in took place on Wednesday afternoon in Las Vegas, airing at midnight in the UK, and both fighters came in at 115.5lbs.

The trainers?

VanZant now trains out of arguably the most famous lighter-weight camp in the UFC, preparing with Uriah Faber’s Team Alpha Male in Sacramento. Her stablemates Faber and Chad Mendes are both fighting this week as well.

VanZant is usually cornered by former UFC welterweight Martin Kampmann.

Namajunas fights out of the Grudge Training Centre in Denver, Colorado, under Trevor Wittman alongside fiance and former UFC heavyweight Pat Barry.

What are the odds? 

VanZant is a strong favourite with odds as short as 4/6 while 5/4 is the best value for Namajunas with a number of outlets.

Anyone else worth watching on the main card?

The co-main event is a lightweight bout between two accomplished grapplers in UFC veteran Jim Miller and Ultimate Fighter Live winner Michael Chiesa.

But more eagerly anticipated is the return of 19-year-old sensation Sage Northcutt, who burst on to the UFC scene with a 57-second win over Francisco Trevino in his debut.

Northcutt, who has a background in karate and was scouted personally by UFC supremo Dana White, will face Cody Pfister, who is 1-1.

Nineteen-year-old excitement machine Sage Northcutt will also be in action on Thursday night's bill