On a circuit, a well setup turbo m42 will destroy an NA 6 pot.
If your looking for good bang for your buck, then turbo charge your m42 with a mid sized turbo.
For track use, a major priority is avoiding lag, so to do this
Use as small a turbocharger as you think you may needYes a T78 can boost up to ridiculus pressures, but you will never need them.
A good turbo is the gt25 35r.
Make your turbo plumbing as short as possible The shorter the distance between the compressor and the port, the less air there is to stall in the pipes during on/off throttle situations.
Use an air to water intercoolerThis type of intercooler is in a barrel full of water which is connected to a radiator and fan, this further decreases pressurized pipe length and hence lag.
It may not look as cool as an intercooler peeping out of your front bumper, but people wont be able to see it when they're behind you

make your pressure pipes as skinny as possibleThis will reduce lag by reducing the amount of air in the pipes and also pressure drop due to a smaller surface area of air touching the side walls (laminar flow)
Large diameter pipes are only needed on huge turbos, where volume becomes more important than velocity.
Fit a recirculating dump valveIts basic physics. If your turbo has compressed the air for you, it is a complete waste venting it to the atmosphere, so save your turbo the effort by plumbing your dump valve back to your intake (pre turbo)
Hope that helps a little

There is no point comparing the m42/4 and the s14 because they are very different engines.
The s14 is a homologation special with high compression, itbs and a lumpy camshaft.
Whereas the m42 is a much milder 4 cylinder with reasonably high compression, very economically minded cams and an intake manifold designed for daily driving.
I believe that the m42/4 is extremely strangled from the factory so as not to compete against the higher cost 6 pot engined cars, but with enough work (as proven by the s42) it can be as good, if not better than the s14.