Hammy tested it and particularly liked the exhaust note, the limited slip differential, and ability to switch stability mode on the fly so as to make it more spirited. Some bloke (sort of a Stig replacement?) also took out in the rain at their new "home" text track and seemed to wring its neck pretty well in the wet.
Their consensus seemed to be that the stock 124 Spider is not better than the Miata (though some may disagree because of the different engine and suspension tuning) but they all agreed that the Abarth version is definitely more worth having than the Miata, even with its higher price tag. It's likely largely due to the limited slip differential so one can get the power down mid-corner...
FWIW, it truly is a puerile show: My nine year old daughter finds it grossly comedic, so we can see the effective level of humour. I'm not trying to make her a jingoistic Briton, just get her into car stuff.
Cheers,
phaetn