Dont think so
I think it was done on purpose - in a 1v1 zone battle, a ship needs to be sunk for the other one to receive the damage count.
Back when the zones were limited to a certain class, even the 1v1's in that specific class without anyone sinking didn't count, damage dealt wise.
(anti alt farming, aka getting in a battle, deal 100k damage to each other and peacefully leave)