Not sure if they were expecting a different result? This car will be priced in the same ballpark as a 718 Cayman S (FROM just under R1M). M2 or M4 would be better comparison and TT S vs. M140i maybe (still very different cars).
Either way AWD and 17% more power its just physics at play here. If it was a car that was very peaky it might have been more interesting but both these cars make torque in the 'modern' way.
In this kind of scenario, a bit of weight can't negate the benefit of a LOT more power. Look at some M5/6 vs M4 comparisons. Discussed this a couple of weeks back on one of the groups with a few members on here. You see 1900+kg and immediately think, "damn my M3/4 must kill it on power to weight" - however even with 360kg+ more weight, power to weight is still a bit (12kw[16hp]/ton) better on the 5/6.
"Feel" is, of course, another story, but this is drag/rolling runs we are talking about here...