At this point, I'd like to sincerely understand what is wrong with this coin.
You've already declared it to be the diamond in your signature, so how why ask now?
It is the diamond. But my question was more along the lines of why is it not seen as such.
It has been asked and answered many times, but often closed mindedness and conspiracy theorizing, and viewing everything through a prism of believing every comment to be FUD or hate or shilling causes people to reject the obvious valid answer.
Small technical advantages don't, in general, allow a follower to overtake a leader. This is true in any market. It takes more than that. If the advantages become greater, or if the leader stumbles, then the follower can overtake, but rarely otherwise. This does not mean the follower can't still do quite well. Litecoin does quite well, as do #2 leaders in almost every market.
Except when comparing XMR to BBR, both are so tiny and insignificant, it hardly matters who is currently "in the lead."