The deformation is depressed grooves and raised ridges. If you grind the ridges in the sole back to the base level, you'll form a flat which the ridge on the cleat will bite into instead of sliding back into the original position due to ridge-to-ridge contact
I had been thinking about that and making a little sanding block to knock the tops off. The cleats have only been tightened in for 24 hours, so I’ve slackened it off completely in case the surface of the material settles back. Might get lucky.
The deformation is depressed grooves and raised ridges. If you grind the ridges in the sole back to the base level, you'll form a flat which the ridge on the cleat will bite into instead of sliding back into the original position due to ridge-to-ridge contact