Howard, good hearing for you again. Gear ratios were the same and messin' with the gearing is not something Mini guys do. You can't compare UF1 with mini cause of the ability to change gearing.
In spite of what you may believe the 25.5 B/L was equal in speed to a stock Silvercan, not significantly slower and in fact may have been a little faster in a straight line. The timing had to be increased significantly off the scale, but with the low gearing and light weight of a Mini, that was not a problem.
I understand your point about using the same motor, but Tamiya is a business and not a racing organization. Commercial and business relationships will always be factored into the decisions. Striving for equivalency, as you phrased it, is worthwhile. The Mini was designed around a Silvercan and seems to work best and is, IMO, most enjoyable at those speeds. If they decide to change, from my perspective, I'd like to see a Silvercan equivalent.