Question for top ranked FTP players

100% F2P here and currently finishing just shy of rank 20. I never had a pause as I started playing in early February and hit 70 the morning of the new 80 cap. I also early on focused mainly on Jedi so I never really had a meta team that you usually see in the top 20. But yeah, trying to compete with people who are several levels ahead of you and likely also pre-crafted and are now at gear IX, is pretty tough. But once I finally hit the new cap and get a few more toons, I can see myself getting into the top 5 and maybe even #1 a few times (though not too often as it's hard to hit that point when I work until just about payout and don't have time to snipe the spot with multiple refreshes).