Mine is probably considered a monster cross or whatever. More aggro than a typical race bike.
I run 40 x 11-42 on a 10 speed setup. I've got the low gear I need. In fact, 90% of the time, I run my other cassette, 11-36.
The high end is a bit lacking and the gaps between gears screws up spinning.
I think with 12 speeds and 10-36, you could race on that. I don't know if that exists.
I've got a couple actual road bikes, all with doubles and I would never consider 1x for pavement.
1x seems a lot nicer for knocking around and getting messy. I don't know about racing on it though. Some people do though.