I shoot I am never going to be the best. The person that taught me was a shooter that put in years of training, daily. He could show up at a match, pick up any gun there and win. People today want instant gratification, no work involved by them.
You want to be the best you have to put in insane amounts of time, then money.
I actually picked up a sponsor for 2 years and was able to put in more time, I am not going to be a champion. I do not have the "piece" that gets you there.
Equipment is part of the equation.
I remember many times going to the range with XXXX and someone complains their gun wasn't good enough. He would offer help then shoot their gun perfectly. Nope not the equipment.
IMO 99% of people can not outshoot the gun even a stock gun.
EDIT: thought we could go to a spec series like NASCAR or something. Everyone gets the exact same gun form one supplier. Or one gun is range supplied and everyone shoots that gun.
I agree that rarely it's the equipment holding people back. Shooting a 16lb .308 versus a 26lb 6 dasher - yeah that's going to be a decently sized disadvantage. All else equal though, a Ruger RPR isn't going to be at much of a disadvantage to a full blown custom.
If you want to win, focus on training. Be a hungry competitor.
The issue with stock rifles is there is no one size fits all. People are built different, and need different rifles as a result. Different LOP, different grips, triggers, diopter settings, etc.