You bring up a good issue there, on price. Putting the base model M3 aside, for the ones we could all afford at the time, the BMWs trounced the Lancias. The 316i was by far a quicker and more sporty car than both the front-wheel-drive Delta 1.5, or the more expensive Delta 1.6 GT. When the Delta 1.6 got a turbo, the BMW 318iS came out, again, it was a more capable machine. The 325i was getting on for going out of affordability for most, and in terms of power, was fairly on par with the unaffordable HF Integrale.
The really fast Delta Integrale were the Evoluzione versions, and if they're on the table, so to speak, so too should be the M3 Evolution/Sport Evolution, which again were faster than the equivalent Lancia.
This is a discussion I haven't had in about 20 years.