I have a question about how XSI handles linked textures.

Say I make a model that incorporates two different texture files. I UV map them and everything is wonderful. Now I want to make a more basic version of that model that will only include one of the two textures. Will deleting all the faces that have the unwanted texture unlink it from the model? What I mean is that once those faces are removed, will the model still try to load that texture when the model is viewed. I know when you apply a texture to a model, it knows to load it, but do I need to explicitly un-apply the texture, or will it know not to load that texture if it's not on the model anywhere?

Man I hope that makes sense. Anyone got a clue?