If the bikes were anywhere near even - then I think you would see it in the top 4 in the countdown.
I don't know any PSM fan that believes the 4 most talented riders in the class are the 4 left fighting for the championship right now.
The most talented? Let's look objectively, Ellis and Hines probably have the best bikes, Smith was dominant early, with another great package and, is no slouch of a rider. Peggy has a great bike/team and is up and coming (here to stay?). Angelle's not there because she couldn't sustain consistent riding performances this season.
Vegas is a horrible barometer to gauge parity. If Team Army had a developed fuel injection system they'd run at or near the top at elevation. Treble reportedly lost f.i. patience against the advise of VHR.
Since the revision, Angelle's performances numbers wise are stellar (her results less than). You could argue her bike was second to none for a reasonable portion of the season. It would also appear Antron has been victimized by either a poor working bike, or a poor running one all season. When the bike's been reasonably competitive, he's made mistakes. Hines, Ellis and Smith are all very good riders with very good teams. Peggy is up and coming with a very good team. The missing element may be Angelle, but again, this season, she's had sub-par riding performances, when on the dominant bike.
10 lbs. may be forthcoming, but considering the bulk of the quality, highly funded teams are V-twin oriented the results seem on par.