Nobody's mentioned the most important elements: crew and doctrine.
In 1940, French tanks in all categories were superior to their German counterparts, sometimes markedly so. But German tanks swept the French from the field. The reason was that while the Panzer III and IV were inferior in armaments and armor, their crews were better trained and their armored doctrine was superior. Similarly when the Germans invaded Russia, while the T34 was superior, the German crews were veterans by this point and their better tactics and communications gave them victory where on-paper statistics spelled defeat.
With that in mind, consider the Abrams crews versus the crews of a Leopard. Which contains more combat veterans? Which units have fought together in combat? Which larger formations have their logistics base accustomed to repairing battle damage and keeping their vehicles operational?
You really have to give it to the Abrams in this respect.