The US market is different, Aedo. If you ain't got power here, you earn a reputation for being slow, and the 111R already has that reputation to a degree. Most of the time it's merely a marketing tool and doesn't necessarily make the cars particularly fast, but if you look at any US car commercials, virtually
every single one, save for BMW on the 328/528, boasts engine configuration and power ratings. A 134hp Elise would be a miserable sell here, considering a Mazda Miata has more power and costs less. That's what buyers look at, even if they never use the power at the hand.
The exception to this rule is hybrids. Hybrid cars get a free pass for having anemic motors because people want to see the highest MPG ratings on hybrids, even though the ignoramuses don't realize the same motor in a non-Hybrid will yield the same MPG numbers on the hwy..
Anyways, different market here.