It is what it is....Clarkson's propensity to eschew his troglodyte heritage is nothing new.
I really do think he just misses the point because he's h3ll bent on being "funny". And that point is the appearance of the type of "aspirational" technology that was being shoehorned into road cars from racing....
Maserati reached for the ultimate in an attempt to offer its buyers that X factor. Skyhook. F1 gearbox technology. Neither very good imo. ( I should be careful here as I have no experience of Maserati's FI box but of a well known German brand- which was all the intro I needed to understand I hated it because it was clumsy, slow and un-involving) Both areas of development that have improved. The way Maserati has been managed as a marque since, it has continued to see a decline in profile, not that I find it easy to put my finger on what that profile is/was. Im not sure it was ever as simple as "race to road" though..
Whilst the cars have perhaps become better technically, they are also all much of a muchness ....
This is the shame of it...