In the Hard tail range you will find bicycles whose vocation is to make no concessions to pedaling.
Both for the amateur and the competitor there is much more to gain than to lose by rolling in large wheels on a semi-rigid: they erase more the relief, thus bring more comfort, adhere better in rise as in bend with the gain in ease that goes with it.
The gain in stability is also significant thanks to a bottom bracket lower than the wheel axles, ideal for improving the balance, and bases generally longer than the 26 '', a guarantee of stability at high speed in curves.