Did the UFC provide the star power to defeat Floyd Mayweather Jr?

Much talk has brewed about Saturday September 19th when the UFC will go head to head with Golden Boy Promotions and Floyd Mayweather Jr. These debates will get increasingly hotter in the upcoming week, but one question needs to be asked, did the UFC provide enough star power to compete?
UFC 103 is being headlined by Rich “Ace” Franklin (25-4-0) and the returning Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort. Franklin has enjoyed much success in his MMA career which has included winning the UFC middleweight title. Franklin’s only losses have come to top notch competition including former PRIDE middleweight and light heavy weight champion Dan Henderson, current UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida, and twice to current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Even with Franklin’s success his status as a pay per view headliner has often come into question. Franklin’s last fight against Wanderlei Silva at UFC 99 drew 360,000 pay per view buys, and his fight against Dan Henderson at UFC 93 drew 320,000 pay per view buys. Though Franklin is a great fighter he doesn’t have the drawing power of fighters like Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Brock Lesnar, or Anderson Silva.
Unfortunately Vitor Belfort doesn’t stand to be a big pay per view draw either. His last fight in the UFC was February 5, 2005 at UFC 51, which would make him relatively unknown to the casual MMA fan. These are the fans we’ll refer to as the post Ultimate Fighter fans that came on after the fight between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar on the finale show. Although Franklin vs. Belfort is a very intriguing matchup it’s not going to have the drawing power that the match truly deserves.
UFC 103 has a very strong undercard despite the recent loss to Mike Swick due to a concussion he received during training. Mirko Cro Cop vs. Junior Del Santos is a great heavyweight matchup that is likely to end in a knockout. UFC 103 also will include the return of welterweight fighter Frank Trigg as he takes on Josh Koscheck. Other notable fights include Tyson Griffin vs. Hermes Franca, and Efrain Escudero vs. Cole Miller. The only problem is the undercard once again may not appeal to the casual MMA fans, but you can be sure that the avid MMA fan is salivating.
Although the UFC has decided to air the prelim fights on Spike TV, their failure to book a marquee name may prove costly. Mayweather’s last fight against Ricky Hatton drew 850,000 pay per view buys, and his fight with de la Hoya drew an amazing 2.1 million buys. Regardless of if you love the guy or hate the guy, he is what his nickname states, money, and whatever card his name is attached to is followed by success. When it comes down to it, it’s all in the numbers; Mayweather’s fights stunt UFC events headlined by Franklin, plain and simple. Will Golden Boy Promotions put on a better show? Probably not, but unfortunately sometimes it’s all in the name. One thing remains for sure the war of words will continue in the upcoming week, but who will attain full bragging rights?

Source: http://www.examiner.com/x-21442-Sacramento-MMA-Examiner~y2009m9d13-Did-the-UFC-provide-the-star-power-to-defeat-Floyd-Mayweather-Jr