a Drag race... it would be close... I think I've heard that the LST pulls the Revo at second gear (stock, and I don't know how well it was tuned), but they both top out about the same speed. Track racing... depends on the driver.... people have won races with the LST... people have won races with the Revo... depends on driver experience. As far as quality and durability... I have replaced minimal parts on my Revo. I have spent LESS than $30 in the 8 months that I've owned mine on repairs... of course, I've upgraded, so that's not included in the price, but those things that I've upgraded due to breakage is. The 2.5r is a good motor... somewhat of a pain to tune, but once you get it tuned... it's a great motor.

About your friend... either he sucks at driving, or he just got one-in-a-million that aren't as good (maybe it was made on a Friday afternoon...) I've had 2... sold one a few months ago... and when I sold it ... it was PERFECT... I had NEVER broken a part on it... it tuned up EXCELLENT.