With Xtreme Couture teammates Tyson Griffin and Evan Dunham agreeing in principle to meet at UFC 115 in Vancouver this summer, The Great Teammate Debate is bound to heat-up again.

While I certainly understand all the arguments for teammates squaring off in the center of the cage or ring, I have always and will always remain on the side of the fighters who are disinterested in doing battle with their friends and teammates.

For starters, the idea that MMA is an individual activity is flawed.

Yes, a fighter is alone inside the cage during their fight, but that is the only time during the entire process leading up to that bout where that is true. In the months of work before the 15-25 minutes spent solo inside the cage, each and every fighter is surrounded by a collection of people who are dedicated to helping them get ready for their fight. Included in that group are teammates who serve as sparring partners, coaches and friends during the journey to the cage.

Many fighters will tell you that it's not the fight itself that is the hard part; it's the time spent in the gym with teammates and coaches. The alone time in the cage is the reward for all the hard work put in as part of the collective.

The notion that a fighter should "do their job" and take the fights offered to them is misleading as well. Let's use Jon Fitch and American Kickboxing Academy as an example.

Some would argue that it is Fitch's "job" to take the fights offered to him by Joe Silva and the UFC, even if the offer is to fight fellow AKA members Josh Koscheck or Mike Swick. In actuality, Fitch, like all fighters, has the ability to turn down any fight they are not interested in taking.

Martin Kampmann turned down a fight against Canadian T.J. Grant following his win over Carlos Condit last year because he felt Grant was a step back in competition after having beaten the former WEC champion. Few, if any, cried foul or called for Kampmann to "do his job" in that instance.

In the case of Fitch and his fellow AKA welterweights, more people are interested in the fight because each of the trio resides in the upper echelon of the UFC welterweight division. The same applies to the potential for fights involving members of Black House in the light heavyweight division. We want to see those fights not because we're eager to see teammates wage war against each other, but because we view them as compelling fights.

Additionally, the UFC - or any other promotion for that matter - does not have the ability to force a fighter to take a fight. If that was the case, we might have seen Bobby Lashley fight Shane Del Rosario or Jay Hieron fight Marius Zaromskis this past weekend at Strikeforce: Miami, but we all know neither of those fights happened.

One thing that often goes unconsidered when talking about why teammates should fight is the importance of routine in preparation for a fight, and the upcoming Griffin - Dunham fight serves as a perfect example of the problem that arises.

While very little will change for Tyson Griffin as he prepares for his trip north of the border, Evan Dunham will play the part of a gypsy for a couple of months. Griffin will remain at Xtreme Couture, working with...