Racing (especially 1/12th scale) is a game of patience. You may feel your driving is right there and if you are running competitive equipment you're on the right track (no pun intended). Look at your lap times from the print outs and if you notice they are all within a couple tenths of the last one then you may be right and you need more power or better motors but if they fluxuate a lot then you should look at driving style and trying to maintain a more linear throttle finger going in and out of corners.
Smoothing the lines on the track can make a few tenths per lap and so can a ton of little things elsewhere.
Since you are new to electrics you are probably new to carpet as well. After every run check the axles and bearings for carpet fibres, clean the diff, check all bearings are spinning free of any fibres or grit, check tire wear and the chassis for scuff marks from track tape or tire compound (if you see a lot of rubbing on the sides of the chassis you may be running a bit low or need a stiffer t plate. ) in any case these little things make a world of difference on the track.
Work on the maintenance of the car off the track and concentrate on the smoothest lines to maintain the most speed you can on the track. Don't try to win it in the first turn, get on your own pace and don't worry about the cars behind you cuz it will throw you off, watch the cars ahead of you to try to gain positions (catching is usually easier than outrunning) but once you get close don't push too hard... wait for the opening to make the pass clean (nobody wants to loose because they were taken out and nobody wants to win cuz they took someone out) there are far greater personal rewards to making a clean pass and sticking it.