Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather: Who Will Reign as 2011 Pay-Per-View King?

Unbeaten Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao are set to fight before the year ends. They won't actually face each other in the ring, but they will try to prove and show the world who is the real pay-per-view king.

The fight for PPV supremacy will take into account their respective opponents and how they will contribute to the generation of PPV buys.

Taking on different opponents, Mayweather is scheduled to face Victor Ortiz on September 17 while Pacquiao will go up against Juan Manuel Marquez in a trilogy set for November 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

By the end of this year, boxing fans will know who will reign as the new PPV king tandem for 2011.

Mayweather's record as the undisputed PPV king has not been challenged in past years after raking in 2.4 million PPV buys during his fight with Oscar de la Hoya back in 2007.

The Mayweather vs. de la Hoya fight was a tandem that was hard to beat at that time because they were both stars in their own right. 

Although it remains the highest-grossing fight in terms of PPV buys, a great number of boxing fans believe the number was achieved because of de la Hoya's star power.

As Mayweather goes up against PPV neophyte Ortiz, he will be the main attraction of the evening and the resulting numbers at the end of the fight will determine his PPV-drawing power, being the star of the show.

Mayweather has proven his ability to attract huge audience whenever he appears in major fights. And with support from Golden Boy Promotions (GBP), his promoter on record for his September 17 date with Ortiz, there is no doubt that he will generate millions in PPV buys.

The question is, will his PPV numbers surpass what Pacquiao and Marquez can generate on November 12, considering Marquez has his own circle of PPV supporters?

Starting out with Oscar de la Hoya in 2007, Pacquiao has maintained over a million in PPV buys for every fight except for his hastily-staged match with Ghana's Joshua Clottey in 2010.  

And with Marquez helping out with his own hordes of Mexican loyalists, it is possible that the Pacquiao-Marquez tandem will emerge as the top grosser in PPV buys in this year's two major fights.

Still, the undercard lineup—which has not been officially announced—could be a major contributing factor in their fight for PPV supremacy.

So who do you think will reign in this year's fight for PPV supremacy?