I can't speak from personal experience, but a bloke I know used to have a 1200 coupe racecar. He started out with a wild A12. He build adjustable suspention ect for it. He said that despite getting owned on the straights, he dominated everything around the bends. Then the motor went bang.
Swapped in a ca18de. The car was slower than with the a12 around our local racetrack.

Swapped in a CA18det,
Car went like a cut cat. But, it was no longer the weapon it used to be in the corners.