The notion of seeing two teammates squaring off against each other, who also happen to compete in the same weight class, might be an ideal matchup for some fans.
But the idea hasn’t sat well with some of those fighters who have been persuaded to participate, particularly Anderson Silva.
Silva has been caught in the center of this topic and he has refused to involve himself in any sort of altercation between himself and his teammates.
In an exclusive interview with SporTV, (courtesy of BloodyElbow.com) Silva said that he values the honor and bond that teammates share and believes it is not necessary to potentially damage it in order to satisfy the fans and UFC President Dana White.
“I have nothing against Dana (White), I admire him, but he doesn’t know what this is, and he can’t say that two friends should fight,” Silva said. “We spend more time together than with our own families. We share the pains, the frustrations, and just because he wants to sell a fight that he thinks it would be cool and that the public would like to see two companions fighting.”
White responded to the champion’s comments and said as a fighter, Silva’s job is to fight whoever is put in front of him, regardless of his relationship with them.
“If they have to fight, it doesn’t mean that they don’t like each other, that they can’t be friends. It’s business, it’s what they do for a living,” White said. “Vitor used to train with him. Did you see what he did to his friend? I guarantee you that the guys that are his friends want to be like him.”
White’s aggressive approach to put on big fights can often be perceived as unethical at times. It’s his job to promote fights, but he cannot force it upon his employees to be put in an uncompromising situation that can affect their relationship with a fellow fighter and their training camp.
White’s handling of Jon Jones and Rashad Evans might be the UFC boss’ first legitimate attempt at constructing a rift between two former teammates, but it isn’t the most popular choice among the rest of the mixed martial arts community.
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