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For scenarios on an asphalt racetrack, AWD's advantage is really on corner exit where the power can be applied sooner (usually) than a RWD car. The penalty of AWD is added weight, added drivetrain loss, usually higher center of gravity since the engine is usually mounted higher to account for the extra drive shafts, and also a higher polar moment of inertia.
The best AWD track stars are probably the lamborghinis and the nissan GTR but I don't think they can achieve as low of a center of gravity and polar moment as a Ferrari 458 or McLaren MP4-12C.
Anyway, your experience with the STi is really just an anecdote in isolation since we know nothing about the modifications of either cars. Tires alone could have made all the difference, not just because the STi is AWD. Also, the most important unknown... the drivers.
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