[asshanson]

Nt05r rear, nt05 front. Perfect pair according to nitto haha. I would put the regular nt05 up against the sumitomos.
And yea, just treat hard rain as bad weather, drive slow and you'll make it. Sacrifices for sticky tires I guess.
Personally I'd stick with 17s for traction if you won't be road racing.

Also, the r888 is a road race tire like the nt01, don't get it for a drag radial. I was actually thinking of those for my next tire on the noble.