i ran 26x9x12 and 26x12x12 on the rubicon.i never have seen a set of 25 mud runners so ia mnot sure if the tread is as deep as the 26's,that would be the only reason to move up to 26's..as far as the 10's all the way around,never have run that setup and don't plan to on the rincon,i like how easy it steers and don't want to mess with that.
as far as durability i think the mud runners are in the top 5 for that..
and i agree if you get stuck with 25's..26's in the same tire would not have helped..