Balistics matter when you are comparing calibers on paper. Bullets matter when you are comparing performance in the field. In the field for me on deer size game, the 25-06 has been much more effective. In the field the 250 Savage has performed much better on deer than my 243's and 6MM Rems. On paper though the 250 Savage does not stack up well. I have had four 243 rifles and two 6MM Remington rifles and have put them all through their paces. Just reporting what I have seen. I have reloaded many hundreds of rounds for all of them.