Do navalized aircraft always lose to land-based designs?

Why use aircraft compromised by navalization against land-based opponents?

Float gear can impose penalties, but carrier-strengthened aircraft may gain durability that offsets some disadvantages.

Float gear can compromise an aircraft's performance, but that does not make every navalized aircraft inferior in combat. Reinforcement for deck landing and shipboard service can let a carrier aircraft absorb significant punishment. The comparison depends on which naval requirement shaped the design rather than on the naval label alone.