Chiefs
Hurricanes
FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton
Championship Standings
The biggest game of the Super Rugby Pacific regular season so far. The Hurricanes sit top on 30 points with a game in hand and a competition-best +189 points differential — riding a six-match winning run that includes last week's 42–19 dismantling of the Blues. The Chiefs are 3rd on 27 from eight, three points behind with a game more played. A Chiefs win puts them level at the top; a Hurricanes win all but locks up the minor premiership.
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hurricanes | 7 | 6 | 1 | +189 | 30 |
| 2 | Blues | 9 | 6 | 3 | +79 | 29 |
| 3 | Chiefs | 8 | 6 | 2 | +104 | 27 |
| 4 | Brumbies | 8 | 5 | 3 | +54 | 24 |
| 5 | Queensland Reds | 8 | 5 | 3 | −36 | 22 |
| 6 | Crusaders | 8 | 4 | 4 | +44 | 20 |
| 7 | NSW Waratahs | 8 | 4 | 4 | −28 | 18 |
| 8 | Highlanders | 9 | 3 | 6 | −55 | 15 |
| 9 | Fijian Drua | 8 | 3 | 5 | −98 | 12 |
| 10 | Western Force | 8 | 2 | 6 | −31 | 10 |
| 11 | Moana Pasifika | 9 | 1 | 8 | −222 | 4 |
Chiefs
W6, L2Three straight wins by a combined 73 points heading into this — the 62–17 demolition of Moana Pasifika in Auckland was ruthless. Damian McKenzie's orchestration has lifted the attack to 35.9 points per game. The two losses came against top-tier opposition (Crusaders at home, Brumbies in Canberra) and were by a combined 19 points — they haven't been blown out once. Peaking at the right moment.
Hurricanes
W6, L1The most destructive side in Super Rugby Pacific. Six wins on the bounce — five of them by 20+ points, four by 40+ — averaging 43.7 points per game. The 42–19 beatdown of the previously unbeaten Blues last week was a statement of intent. Their only defeat was a 25–20 stumble in Suva against Fijian Drua in Round 3; they've since scored 234 and conceded just 92. Jordie Barrett, Ruben Love and Billy Proctor are running a clinic on backline play.
Head-to-Head in Hamilton
9 – 2 – 4
Chiefs wins · Draws · Hurricanes wins (last 15 meetings in Hamilton)
The Chiefs have historically owned this fixture at FMG Stadium Waikato — nine wins, two draws, and just four defeats in the last 15 meetings in Hamilton. But the trend has flipped recently: the Hurricanes won the most recent clash 35–17 in Wellington (May 2025), and the last Chiefs home meeting ended 17–20 to the Canes in 2024. Across all venues the last five have gone Hurricanes 3, Chiefs 2 — the old Chiefs stranglehold on this rivalry is gone.
Recent Results
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Super Rugby Pacific | Hurricanes 35–17 Chiefs |
| Jun 2024 | Super Rugby Pacific | Hurricanes 19–30 Chiefs |
| May 2024 | Super Rugby Pacific | Chiefs 17–20 Hurricanes |
| Apr 2024 | Super Rugby Pacific | Hurricanes 36–23 Chiefs |
| May 2023 | Super Rugby Pacific | Chiefs 23–12 Hurricanes |
| Apr 2023 | Super Rugby Pacific | Hurricanes 17–33 Chiefs |
Average score in the last 6 meetings: Across all meetings since 2009, it's Chiefs 25 – Hurricanes 23 — as tight as derbies get. The Chiefs have won three of the last five in Hamilton, but the Hurricanes have taken three of the last five overall.
Extended Form
Chiefs13W, 5L (last 18)
2026: W vs Blues (A), W vs Highlanders (A), L vs Crusaders (H), W vs Moana Pasifika (H), L vs Brumbies (A), W vs Force (A), W vs Waratahs (H), W vs Moana Pasifika (A 62–17). 2025: W vs Force (H 56–22), L vs Hurricanes (A 17–35), W vs Crusaders (A 35–19), W vs Moana Pasifika (H 85–7), W vs Highlanders (A 41–24), W vs Brumbies (H 37–17), L vs Blues (H 19–20), W vs Highlanders (H 46–10), L vs Crusaders (A 12–16), L vs Brumbies (A 24–33).
Elite and consistent — the Chiefs have been a top-four outfit for two straight seasons. Their only real weakness has been against the Crusaders and Brumbies on the road; they've otherwise beaten everyone. The 85–7 hiding of Moana Pasifika in 2025 and the 46–10 thumping of the Highlanders showed the ruthless edge when McKenzie is firing.
Hurricanes14W, 3L, 1D (last 18)
2026 unbeaten run of 6 includes 50–7 at Highlanders, 59–19 at Waratahs, and 42–19 demolition of the Blues. 2025: W vs Chiefs (H 35–17), W vs Highlanders (H 24–20), W vs Reds (A 31–27), W vs Moana Pasifika (H 64–12), L vs Brumbies (A 28–35), W vs Crusaders at various, L vs Brumbies (A 29–35).
The best team in Super Rugby over the last 12 months. They've won 14 of 18 with an average points-for of 38 and three separate 50+ point hidings. The only losses have been tight — to the Brumbies in Canberra and Fijian Drua in Suva. On the road in New Zealand they're practically unstoppable right now.
Chiefs XV
Lineups not yet announced. The Chiefs will likely stick close to the side that dismantled Moana Pasifika 62–17 last week. Damian McKenzie is the headline act at 10 or 15, with Wallace Sititi, Luke Jacobson and Samipeni Finau anchoring the loose trio. Samisoni Taukei'aho, Tupou Vaa'i and Josh Lord give the pack serious All Blacks pedigree.
Hurricanes XV
Lineups not yet announced. Clark Laidlaw's Hurricanes are in form and unlikely to rotate much despite the hot streak. Jordie Barrett pulls the strings at 12 (or 15), Cam Roigard remains the most incisive scrum-half in the competition, and the back row of Du'Plessis Kirifi, Brad Shields and Devan Flanders has been dominant. Tyrel Lomax and Pasilio Tosi shore up the scrum, with Asafo Aumua the hooker.
Key Matchups
The Hurricanes hold subtle edges across the backline — Cam Roigard is the best scrum-half in the competition right now, and the Barrett/Proctor midfield axis has been surgical. The Chiefs' counter is McKenzie, whose broken-field running and goal-kicking is the one weapon that can tilt a tight derby. Up front it's a genuine coin-flip — both packs are loaded with All Blacks, and the breakdown battle between Sititi and Kirifi will be worth the entrance fee alone. The decisive matchup is at 9 — if Roigard gets clean ball, the Hurricanes' strike runners will find the space they need.
Match Forecast
This is the tightest match of the season — a genuine pick 'em between two of the three best sides in Super Rugby Pacific. The scorecard nets to exactly zero: the Chiefs' home fortress and historical Hamilton edge (9-2-4 in the last 15) cancels the Hurricanes' ruthless six-game winning run and superior backline form. The tiebreaker is FMG Stadium itself — the Hurricanes haven't won a regular-season trip to a fellow top-three NZ side since 2024, and the Chiefs at home under McKenzie are a different beast to the team that lost in Wellington last year.
The case for the Hurricanes is straightforward: they've won six straight by an average of 28 points, they've just dismantled a title-contending Blues side 42–19, and Cam Roigard is the competition's best player right now. The case against is that they're yet to face a genuine elite opponent on the road in 2026 — their away wins have come against the Waratahs, Highlanders and (L) Drua, none of them top-half sides. The Chiefs represent a different class of opposition. Expect a tight, physical arm-wrestle decided in the final 10.
Chiefs edge a coin-flip derby at FMG Stadium — McKenzie's goal-kicking the difference in a one-score title-race thriller.