Fiji-born Kini Naholo's Hurricanes side has issued a warning to other teams in the Super Rugby Pacific Competition after the Canes thumped the Brumbies 66-12 in Wellington.
Any questions over whether the Hurricanes were the real deal in 2026 have been answered in emphatic fashion.
The onslaught started early, and the foot was not taken off the throat as the top qualifiers sent an ominous warning to the competition.
Ngane Punivai bagged a trio of late tries while Ruben Love kicked a perfect 10 from ten off the tee.
Striking twice inside the opening ten minutes, the Canes set the tone quickly.
Despite the wet, the Hurricanes threw caution to the wind with some expansive play, running the Brumbies ragged in a dominant display.
The opener went to Caleb Delany, capping off some cracking interplay between the backs.
Brumbies mistakes were swiftly punished through clinical counter attack, Asafo Aumua with a beautiful ball in the tackle to Josh Moorby who linked with Cam Roigard running a perfect support line.
Next it was Love to break the line, sending Naholo down the touch-line with the final inside ball to Billy Proctor.
Roigard bagged a brace before the break with Warner Dearns also getting on the score-sheet as the Hurricanes took a commanding 38-0 half-time lead.
It took ten minutes for the Canes to score after oranges, Dearns dotting down for his second.
The replacement winger got the first of his three as he pounced on a loose Brumbies pass, and set off from halfway, Wright closed in but Punivai did just enough to get it on the grass.
His second came off the back of some set piece perfection.
A genius switch play at the lineout sent Punivai in again untouched before he completed his trio after Love sent a a picture perfect kick across, Punivai powering to the line to bring curtains on the demolition job.
