....but this makes it more likely the winner will be firing 9mm...
Not necessarily so. A quality .45 with a polished chamber throat will feed magazine after magazine of JHP without failure. Bigger entry and much bigger exit wounds. Its a whole different ballgame With a .45.
The military would rather use a smaller lighter round for logistics and load out reasons. If modern hollow point ammo makes the 9mm equivalent to a 40 or 45 (which the FBI says is true), then they will probably go that direction.
Their published goal was to use a round 10% more effective than the 9mm NATO round. A modern 9mm +p hollow point round does that and more.
I would love to see them move to a 10mm or 45 auto, but with this move, I don’t think it is in the cards.
.45 Caliber...because shooting twice is just wasteful!! :)