https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/20...-that-in-2020/
This is basic logic...there's no mystery here. You have a car that is competitive with a VW GTi in luxury but competitive with a Corolla in power. It's a sweet spot NOBODY wants. You can go that slow for cheaper or you can get the same build quality and go much faster.
The civic and veloster N are lower cost competitors to the VW. So mazda needs to build a cheap Golf R competitor with their new AWD system. Even if it's not as high hp, but gets close. If I was buying a hot hatch .. it would be a 3 "IF" it had the right engine. Dual clutch wouldn't hurt either. The mazda 3 is another addition of a list of "almost good but not good enough cars" from japan. I dont know why they abandoned their 90's reputation?