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M3 has power to weight ratio of ~8.9 while M235i is ~10.9. M3 also is considered to have better suspension. The top speeds for those laps were were 119 km/h (74mph) which is a serious handicap for the M3 compared to higher speed tracks so it should stand to reason they should be close competitors in that arena. Take it to a track that you can see >100mph (real track! lol) and the 0.2s difference will likely widen.
The Top Gear track does highlight what I think a lot of people are complaining about with the M3 though, in that it doesn't really shine until you are breaking the law on the streets. It was verrrry difficult for me to not drive 100mph with any open road when I owned my M3 and I was pulled over several times in the last 2 months of ownership. This was one of the small reasons I sold mine, but another reason was that I felt my track days and track mods were just more money than I wanted to spend on an already expensive car. I didn't want my car and track time to be a financial priority. So if you're not going to the track, and don't need the V8 to keep you excited, the M235i makes way more sense.
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