This is some kind of false dichotomy it's not 1 or the other, it's more like the former (WVR-fighting) is a necessary part of of the latter (penetration capabilities).
Really? I flew A-4s and F/A-18 for decades. If on a strike mission an opponent sucked me into a close-in dog fight, he had already won, even if I managed to shoot him down. The LAST thing you want to do when on a strike mission is get sucked into a fur ball. Even when you win the fight, you've lost the mission.