Schaefer is very positive that the outcome of the Floyd Mayweather vs Victor Ortiz fight will be the highest this year. Although he knows it won't achieved the same numbers as the Mayweather vs Dela Hoya fight which garnered 2.4 million PPV buys, they will try to at least reach 2 million.
In May this year, the distinction of having the highest number of PPV buys of 2011 was achieved by Manny Pacquiao and Shane Mosley at 1.3 million buys. Schaefer is confident that they can surpass the number because of the influence of Floyd "Money" Mayweather on the sport of boxing and Victor Ortiz, in his last fight, defeated the then undefeated Andre Berto.
Manny Pacquiao, a congressman of Sarangani in the Philippines and a former resident of nearby General Santos, will fight Juan Manuel Marquez in November 12, 2011, also in Las Vegas. The Pacquiao vs Marquez fight is promoted by Top Rank, owned by Bob Arum, and there are rumors that it will be televised on HBO PPV and not on Showtime, the latest television company tapped by Arum for the Pacquiao-Mosley fight.
Golden Boy Promotions will exert extra effort in promoting the forthcoming Mayweather vs Ortiz fight. The 24/7 Episode 1: Mayweather-Ortiz will start on August 27 but they have already released the teaser videos including the press tour video and the Face Off: Mayweather-Ortiz.
“I have no doubt that will be the most heavily promoted fight in the history of boxing,” said Schaefer. “No question about it. I looked back at the marketing plan they had for De La Hoya and Mayweather, and I swear to you, it pales to that. So I’m really excited about it." he added. “I think the sky’s the limit. And I think the beneficiary is the sport of boxing and those two athletes. Because you have the most skilled of our generation and you have a young man which I think is a very tough opponent, who has an amazing story, an amazing personality. All of that is why I’m convinced that this will be the biggest pay-per-view event of this year.” he said in an interview with BoxingScene.com's Keith Idec.
“There are a lot of assets from the Time Inc. side, both in print and online, which are going to be very much involved,” Schaefer said. “Then you have the HBO assets, and they are going to be involved like they’ve never been. So it is, without a doubt, the most comprehensive overall package ever structured. And I have to say, HBO was very eager to put these different assets in play. After seeing what Showtime has done with CBS, it’s like, ‘Hey, let us show you what we can do.’ ”
The fight between Floyd Mayweather and Victor Ortiz will be on September 17 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas. It will be an all out fight between two stars - the superstar and the rising star - that's why they titled the fight as Star Power.
