Didnt mean for a can of worms to be open but heres the deal:
This oval race (one of the biggest races in the country btw) has changed its format the last few years. First with an expert driver list to keep Modified drivers out of stock. Lately, with all this new found technology, modified is insane, so for the size of the track this event has been held at, Open 13.5 replaced modified. This year, 13.5 blinky mode is used for the "expert" drivers (utilizing Roar guidelines for the ESC), while 17.5 w/ Novak Havoc ESC for the non expert/sponsored guys.
I know driving and chassis setup is all very important. Thats not an issue at all.
These classes utilize a spec motor and battery, (Novak and SMC, respectively). Unfortunate bc I run Epics all year round, but, this being the biggest race of the year for dirtoval, on a very, very high bite track, 2 of the 3 "Expert" classes use the spec equipment, unlike years past.
Already been through the whole "Find a good stator/Rotor and lipo" deal. Got it already, doubt I can find anything better. So where else do you look but the ESC.
I do firmly believe that there are ESC's out there better than others, even in blinky mode, no matter how small the difference may be. No two ESC's (by different mfg's) are identical.
I appreciate everyones input thus far. Keep it coming please.