It’s a serious question… normally, newer is better (i.e., learning from previous mistakes, improving this and that, etc)…
However, some changes may be rule imposed (UCI stuff, etc)…
Kinda like Formula 1 – some rules for “newer” seasons end up slowing the cars down (banning turbos, from V10 to V8, grooved to slick tyres, etc).
So, can 2009 bikes be better than 2010?