UFC 117 Silva vs. Sonnen: Teammate vs. Teammate Debate Could Be Rearing Its Head Again

Teammate vs. teammate.  This is hands down, one of the most polarizing topics in MMA today.  People are either for it or against it with very, very few falling in the middle.  However, this debate may get fired up again if Jon Fitch beats Thiago Alves tomorrow night.  Yesterday, at the UFC 117 pre-fight press conference, Dana White announced that the winner Fitch vs. Alves will get the first shot against the winner of the Welterweight title fight between George St-Pierre and Josh Koscheck in December (kind of went back on it later).  Consequently, if Fitch wins, there is a chance that he might have to face his long-time AKA teammate and friend Josh Koscheck for the title. 

Fitch has openly said that he doesn't want to fight Koscheck, even for the title, but Dana White has other plans.  From MMAfighting's Mike Chiappetta:

That's the word from UFC President Dana White, who confirmed that the victor of the Alves-Fitch co-main event at UFC 117 will receive another welterweight title fight opportunity.  That man, however, would be second in line behind current No. 1 contender Josh Koscheck, who will eventually meet current champion Georges St. Pierre after the conclusion of the 12th season of The Ultimate Fighter. That bout will likely take place in December, meaning the Fitch-Alves winner could have an 8-9 month wait before fighting for the belt. Still, it could make for an interesting scenario if Fitch is able to defeat Alves, and Koscheck upsets St. Pierre.  The possibility led to a somewhat tense moment at Thursday's UFC 117 press conference, when White announced the possibility, adding that Fitch "will fight Koscheck if he wins," even though Fitch and Koscheck -- teammates at the San Jose-based American Kickboxing Academy -- have repeatedly said they would never face each other in the cage.

This isn't the first time Dana has voiced his displeasure about Fitch and Koscheck's unwillingness to fight each other.  From the UFC 111 post fight press conference:

 "There's no doubt [Fitch's] in the mix. Maybe we do him and [Josh] Koscheck for the number one spot," White said of clearing up the 170-pound logjam at the Northern California-based academy. "I wouldn't be open to that," Fitch said of their sacred pact. To which White fired back with, "He doesn't want the title shot that bad then."

In fact, Dana absolutely hates the idea of teammates not fighting each other.

"It's over man," White said. "This whole 'we won't fight each other' thing is over. How long can they go on when they have two of the top guys in the division and they won't fight each other?

Clearly, we know where Dana White stands on this issue, but it is not so clear when it comes to the fighters. More after the jump...

Some fighters have fought teammates before like Xtreme Couture teammates Evan Dunham and Tyson Griffin at UFC 115.  In an interview with Cagepotato, Dunham talked about the challenges of fighting a teammate:

"Tyson [Griffin]'s a great guy, a great training partner, and a friend of mine, but we're both in a business where we're both trying to get as far as we can in the rankings. To hear that was a little disappointing, but I took it as a compliment because I have a lot of respect for Tyson, and to be paired up with him is bittersweet. I want to fight tough guys, but to fight your training partner is tough... I talked with him on the phone before either one of us signed, and we came to the conclusion that it is what it is, and we'll be training partners and friends afterwards. So we'll get in there and get paid for beating each other up - instead of just doing it in practice."

UFC Veteran Mike Pyle has no problem fighting a teammate, especially if it is for the title:

"You can't turn it down. You can't go and have yourself a nice six-fight win streak, and now you have to give it up because your boy has the title."

On the other hand, other fighters share the same view as Koscheck and Fitch.  It is well known that Lyoto Machida would never fight his Team Black House teammate Anderson Silva:

"Anderson is a fight that is totally discarded for me. First, Anderson is a very close friend and he fights in a different division. He has no interest in my division and I feel the same."

Some fighters like ex-UFC fight Wilson Gouveia would prefer not to fight a teammate, but would reluctantly:

"Honestly, I don't want to fight a teammate. That's common sense, but that's what I do for a living. My training partners, my friends, that's what we do. If we have to fight, then we have to fight. It's no choice. We work for a company, and if this company tells us to do this, we gotta do it. That's how we make our money and pay our bills."

As you can tell, there is no cut and dry answer on whether teammates should fight each other (unless your Dana White).  Some fighters will, some fighters won't, some fighters will only if they have or are made to. 

What do you think?  Should teammates fight each other?