Tires Falken or OEM Audi

660 is good bang for the buck. Not as fast as the top tier tires but two or three times the lifespan.

I went with fallen 615+ not the fastest but should last a good number of runs

I'm in a similar boat as you I did the 615k's last season. Personally I am overly pleased with these tires they have been everything I've wanted them to be. And I'll probably get another set of them this year.

The 615k+ is a great budget tire. I did my first season on them and got second place in my regions rookie class. Then, I kept them and still use them for less competitive/ higher run count events. I've done 3 schools on them too. I love these tires. They're fun to drive on, take heat well, and just last. They do amazingly well in the rain also.

They are Falken Ziex ZE950 A/S

Not the same tires, but I’m currently running the Falken Azenis FK460 all season in 255/35/18 and I’ve been super impressed with them considering it’s an all season. Steering is still very precise, the tires are quiet on the highway and they’re communicative as grip loads up, and it breaks away progressively.

I have ridge grapplers and I really like them, but if I were only doing what you were planning on I would go back to wildpeak AT3s. Those tires were actually amazing.

The AT4’s are only slightly louder than the defenders (almost not noticeable) and mpg is probably 1/2 to 1 mpg less. One thing that surprised me though, even though they are 3 peak snow rated they feel less sure footed on light snow than the Defenders.

On a totally non-Mazda related note I put Falken Wildpeak AT Trails on my Jeep just over a year and half ago. All four of them already have weather cracking. And Falken doesn’t have a specific warranty for that, you simply have to claim the warranty under their general six year manufacturing defects and materials and hope they give you some help. They start at 11/32, rated for 65,000 miles and after 20,000 miles they are already down to 6.5/32

I had Falkens as replacement tires on my 626. They lasted a disappointingly short while. Next tire shop said they’re infamous for being soft and wearing quickly.