Beast backing Boks' forward firepower to overwhelm All Blacks in Greatest Rivalry

New Zealand are currently in South Africa and have already defeated the Stormers and Sharks, while they face their third franchise, the Bulls, on Saturday.

Dave Rennie's men have earned 38-21 and 54-0 victories respectively, but their real challenge comes on August 22 when the arch-rivals go head-to-head in Johannesburg.

South Africa have claimed back-to-back Rugby World Cup titles and are currently the number one ranked side in the sport, but the All Blacks are just behind in second.

The tourists, under their new head coach, have shown some improvement since 2025, where they endured an underwhelming campaign under Scott Robertson, winning all three games in the Nations Championship in July.

However, the Springboks go into this contest as favourites and crucially remain the best in the world when it comes to the fundamentals, especially up front.

That is where Mtawarira believes that the Boks will have the superiority, despite recognising the talent the visitors have behind the scrum.

"I think it's going to be a massive contest. I think it's really exciting to have a tour of this kind happen for the first time in 30 years," the former Test prop told IOL.

"That is where the All Blacks will probably stumble, against our forward pack, although they have the ability to play at a very high tempo with an agile backline that can make opponents chase shadows.

"I think we can prepare ourselves for a massive battle, but I am convinced the Springboks' forwards have too much firepower.

"Our pack of forwards will overwhelm the All Blacks. We have an incredible group of forwards who can put us on the front foot in various ways."

The Springboks have home advantage with two games in Johannesburg and one in Cape Town, and Mtawarira expects South Africa to win all three of those encounters.

With the final match on neutral soil in Baltimore, that is where the ex-loosehead reckons the All Blacks could get on the board.

But he ultimately predicts that Rassie Erasmus' men will benefit from home comforts, even if he states that the supporters become less of an issue for touring teams as the series goes on.

"They start feeling at home, so the crowd factor actually doesn't come into play, especially when it comes to probably that second or third Test match," he added.

"I've had many Test matches at Ellis Park against the All Blacks, and they could always prevail. I think they will embrace the elements and acclimatise, or make sure they do what they need to do to prepare well."