Glasgow Warriors booked their place in the Champions Cup knockout stages after a clinical destruction of Racing 92 in Scotstoun.
Tries from George Horne, Jamie Dobie, Sebastian Cancelliere and Sione Tuipulotu put the hosts in control in the first half, while Vinaya Habosi answered the French team’s play.
Rory Darge crossed after the break and although substitutes Lee-Marvin Mazibuko and Tristan Tedder responded for the visitors, Glasgow finished the game with important bonus points.
Next weekend, the Warriors will face English Premiership side Harlequins at Stoop Stadium, looking to secure a higher place in the final group standings and a better draw in the next round.
They jumped out of the blocks and passed the Racing line with just two minutes on the clock.
Tuipulotu made a great break from deep, and a few phases later a great move allowed Josh McKay to send Horne into the sticks and become Glasgow’s record try scorer in European competition.
Horne had to leave the field shortly after for assessment of a head injury and did not re-appear, but his replacement Dobie took his time to leave his mark, ending Matt Fagerson’s powerful run and diving at the second try.
The Warriors were cooking and a brilliant intervention in midfield improved Racing’s defense and freed Cancelliere to score.
The visitors finally showed signs of life five minutes before the break when Antoine Gibert crossed from the penalty spot and Habosi scored to reduce the deficit to 10 points.
Glasgow responded almost immediately, with Tuipulotu pouncing on the ball like a battering ram, bursting through the defense, past Henry Arundell and pouncing to take a 15-point lead into half-time.
The hosts almost put an end to the contest when Darge cut off the back of a rolling maul and went for try number five.
Racing then enjoyed their first period of sustained pressure in the match and were rewarded with a Mazibuko try.
The Parisians arrived at the party late, and Tedder finished a beautiful passage of play and scored the third goal.
However, it was too little too late as Glasgow collected five points to ensure their continued European challenge in the knockout stages.
Glasgow: McKay, Cancelliere, Jones, Tuipulotu, Steyn, Jordan, G Horne, Sutherland, Matthews, Z Fagerson, Brown, Cummings, M Fagerson, Darge, Mann.
Spare parts: Hiddleston, Bhatti, Talakai, Samuel, Miller, Ferrie, Dobie, Weir.
Races 92: Spring, Habosi, Tedder, Chavancy, Arundell, Gibert, Le Bail, Julien, Kaitu’u, Sordoni, Palu, Kpoku, Zinzen, Diallo, Baudonne.
Spare parts: Escobar, Ben Arous, Mazibuko, R. Taofifenua, Diamond, Labarbe, Lancaster, Idrissi.
