Ireland are ready to embrace the frenzied atmosphere that will accompany their second World Cup match against hosts Japan, says Cian Healy.

Both sides secured bonus-point victories in their opening fixtures, so a win in Shizuoka will leave them well-placed for a quarter-final berth.

On Saturday, the Ecopa Stadium will be a cauldron of noise with Irish voices attempting to make their voices heard over what will be a raucous home support.

"When it gets to it, [we will] just embrace it and enjoy the game," said prop Healy.

"There are a lot of Irish here as well so it should be good craic at the game."

Irish fans easily outnumbered their Scottish counterparts during Sunday's meeting in Yokohama, and their team delivered a performance to cheer about, scoring four tries in a dominant display as they won 27-3.

Two days earlier in the tournament opener, Japan overcame a shaky start to ease past Russia 30-10, displaying the same entertaining brand of rugby that saw them burst into the consciousness of rugby fans around the world four years ago.

Healy was part of the Irish squad that defeated Japan twice on their last visit to the country in 2017.

The first of those matches, a 50-22 Irish victory, was played at the venue that will hosts Saturday's game.

"They play such a high-tempo game, they've got a lot of good ball players and finishers," Healy said.

"It's going to be tough preparation for it, and I'd say we'd be pushed for speed work in training.

"It is something we have been working on anyway but it's definitely something we'll be nailing down to be able to handle that attack of theirs."

Humidity training paying off

In a second half played amid a swirling downpour, Ireland's ball-handling trumped Scotland's as they navigated the tricky conditions with aplomb.

Much of the pre-match build-up focused on the idea that Yokohama was forecasted to be in for torrential rain, however it appears that the biggest struggle for the players was the unfamiliar humidity.

"It just takes your breath in a different way, it's not like playing in the sun or anything like that," reflected Healy.

"The recovery period when there's a break in play, you can get back to regular pretty quick.

"But those extended periods of play do put a lot of pressure on the lungs.

"We have done a lot of extended periods of training so it's in the head, it's not a shock. We've been to that place already."

Ireland left Yokohama on Monday to their base for the week in Iwata, a city within Japan's Shizuoka prefecture.

HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Aaron Reutzel dominated the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions race at Hagerstown Speedway on Sunday night, picking up his 15th series victory of the season.

The Clute, Texas, driver and series point leader started on the pole and drove away from fellow front row starter Dale Blaney immediately in his Baughman-Reutzel Motorsports No. 87.

Only two cautions interrupted Reutzel’s march to victory lane. Cautions came out on lap six and 20, respectively, for Lance Dewease and Paul McMahan each having tire troubles.

Reutzel masterfully navigated through traffic, as Blaney, Danny Dietrich, Freddie Rahmer and Gio Scelzi battled each other throughout the top five.

Dietrich solidified his place in second while chasing Reutzel, and then Brian Brown worked his way into fifth past Scelzi in the closing laps. But Reuzel wasn’t going to be denied his second win in three nights.

“Yeah, it was a phenomenal race car,” Reutzel explained. “That’s for sure. I felt like I could go anywhere, and when you got a car that good, you just kind of just sit around and set your own pace and save your stuff which is really a big deal in racing today having a tire out here at the end. Our car has been so good here in the last month, and that’s what we’ve been good at is saving our equipment for the last 10 laps.”

Dietrich held onto finish second while, Rahmer, Dale Blaney and Brown completed the top five.

Dietrich set quick time with a lap time of 16.588 seconds over the 31 entries for the ASCoC portion of the show.

The last time the ASCoC raced at Hagerstown was on July 28, 1983 and the winner that night was Dave Blaney. Blaney was back in competition 36 years later.

In IMCA RaceSaver competition, Drew Ritchey battled Ken Duke, Jr early for several laps before Duke spun going into turn one on lap 14.

Ritchey then had to contend with Ryan Lynn over the remaining laps, but was able to hold on for his first career win at Hagerstown and his seventh win overall in 2019.

The finish:

Feature (30 laps): 1. Aaron Reutzel, 2. Danny Dietrich, 3. Freddie Rahmer, 4. Dale Blaney, 5. Brian Brown, 6. Gio Scelzi, 7. Mike Wagner, 8. Anthony Macri, 9. Cory Eliason, 10. Dylan Cisney, 11. Brock Zearfoss, 12. Logan Wagner, 13. Dave Blaney, 14. James McFadden, 15. Christopher Bell,  16. Kerry  Madsen, 17. Justin Peck, 18. Trey Starks, 19. Skylar Gee, 20. Paul McMahan, 21. Gerard McIntyre, 22. Bradley Howard, 23. George Hobaugh, 24. Anthony Fiore, 25. Lance Dewease

OSWEGO, N.Y. – Jason Simmons Racing has announced a partnership with Seymour Racing and Indy Performance Composites to field a Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals entry for Oswego Speedway International Classic winner Tyler Thompson.

Taking place from Jan. 13-18, 2020, the Chili Bowl Nationals is one of the most recognizable racing events in the country, featuring more than 300 drivers competing for the coveted Golden Driller trophy inside the River Spirit Expo Center in Tulsa, Okla.

At just 17 years old, Thompson has taken the supermodified racing world by storm in recent weeks, not only winning Oswego’s 63rd annual International Classic 200, but also claiming the Midwest Supermodified Series Fall Brawl at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indiana.

A native of Volney, N.Y., Thompson’s versatility has proven impressive at his young age. He combines driving time in supermodifieds with several top runs in DIRTcar’s 358 modified and sportsman ranks, as well as a full season of competition in the Indoor Auto Racing Championship’s TQ Midget division.

“The accomplishments that Tyler (Thompson) has built in a short period of time are certainly impressive and we feel he has the tools to be competitive at the national level,” said team owner Bobby Seymour. “Jeff (West) and I have been talking for a few weeks about making this happen and we are excited to work with Jason (Simmons) and Tyler to put forth a great effort in Tulsa.”

Since 1965, the Seymour family has been a vital asset to open-wheel racing.

Led by National Sprint Car Hall of Famer “Boston” Louie Seymour, Seymour Racing has racked up numerous USAC national championships and more than 100 wins in the USAC Silver Crown, National Sprint Car and National Midget divisions.

Today, Bobby Seymour and his son Matt lead the effort, competing in national events such as the Chili Bowl and regionally with the NEMA Midget circuit.

Seymour Racing fielded two midgets in the 2019 edition of the Chili Bowl Nationals for Tim Buckwalter and Davey Ray. Each driver qualified for preliminary night A-mains against a field of more than 70 entries.

Thompson’s mount for 2020 will be a Spike chassis with Esslinger power, carrying the logos of Seymour Performance Products and Indy Performance Composites. Thompson will compete as part of a three-car effort out of the Seymour Racing stables in January.

“I can’t thank Bobby, Jeff and Jason enough for making this dream a reality,” said Thompson. “Going to Tulsa to compete with some of the best drivers in the world is an honor and being able to do it with an experienced team like Seymour Racing is amazing.

“I look forward to representing upstate New York, Oswego Speedway and DIRTcar in January.”

ASAKA, Japan – Alvaro Bautista will depart Ducati to join the new Honda MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship factory effort next year.

The 34-year-old World Superbike rookie has scored 15 wins this year, but sits second behind Kawasaki’s Jonathan Rea in the championship standings because of his inconsistency in the second half of the season.

“I am really happy, because I believe a lot in the new project with HRC,” said Bautista. “They want to come back to the World Superbike championship as a full factory team, so this has motivated me a lot. To join the HRC factory is very important, as they are an important factory and want to win in WorldSBK again. The challenge for next year will be very difficult, but for sure, I will try and use my experience in the World Superbike championship from this season to develop the bike and hopefully, fight for victories.”

Bautista spent nine seasons in MotoGP riding for Suzuki, Honda, Aprilia and Ducati, but failed to win. His switch to World Superbike this season revitalized his career, opening the door for him to join the new Honda World Superbike factory program.

“We are very happy to welcome Alvaro Bautista to our WSBK racing project for next year,” said Honda Racing Corp. President Yoshishige Nomura. “His arrival in the Honda racing family underlines our strong commitment to compete at full force in every motorsport category, fighting to achieve top sporting results and looking for the best technological innovations, in order to offer our fans and customers fun, joy and excellent products.

“Alvaro is a very fast, experienced rider who has already shown his strong racing attitude and competitiveness in his GP years and in his first season in the WSBK Championship. We are confident that he will make a significant contribution to the growth and development of our project in the exciting and challenging Superbike World Championship.”

WEST BURLINGTON, Iowa – Rain was the winner on Saturday and as a result 34 Raceway will now host the 500th Deery Brothers Summer Series event this Friday, Sept. 27.

The IMCA Late Model tour feature at West Burlington pays $2,000 to win and a minimum of $300 to start.

Pit gates open at 4 p.m. and the grandstand opens at 5 p.m. Hot laps are at 6:30 p.m. with racing to follow. Grandstand admission is $20 for adults, $15 for seniors and students, and free for kids 10 and under. Pit passes are $35.

The Arnold Motor Supply Dirt Knights Tour for IMCA Modifieds and Gangbusters 41 portions of the program were not rescheduled.

The NHL has become a playground for prospects to step in and take on substantial roles with their teams. The 2019-20 rookie class looks unlikely to change that.

Here's a look at the 10 rookies most likely to make big splashes with their respective teams, along with five more who are a little more under-the-radar but could be sleepers in a seemingly deep first-year class.

Impact rookies | Sleepers
Others to watch

IMPACT ROOKIES

1. Cale Makar, D, Colorado Avalanche

My early Calder Trophy prediction is Makar. It's not just because he was one of the most dominant collegiate defensemen I've seen since I started covering the sport. It's not just because he looked great in his 10-game playoff stint with the Avs, in which he registered six points in his first NHL action. It's largely because I can't think of a better fit between a team and a prospect than Makar and Colorado.

He plays the game at a high pace, thanks to explosive skating and elite hockey sense. He passes well and expertly surveys the ice. And as he showed in his 10 playoff games, he is more than prepared for NHL physicality and speed.

2. Jack Hughes, C, New Jersey Devils

Few NHL players have ridden the highs and lows of their careers quite like Taylor Hall has. Edmonton's No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft was traded -- infamously, one-for-one for Adam Larsson -- to the New Jersey Devils in 2016. The move made Hall bitter, especially the following season, when the Oilers became a 100-point team and the Devils sat dead last in the Eastern Conference.

Things took a turn two years later: New Jersey emerged as a frisky playoff team as Hall won the Hart Trophy as league MVP. But he couldn't ride any of the momentum. A knee injury cost him most of last season, and the Devils once again floundered.

Now 27, Hall is ready for vengeance yet again while staring at a career crossroads. Next summer, he'll become the NHL's premier free agent, and the Devils would like to keep him around. After landing the top pick of the draft, Devils GM Ray Shero made a flurry of moves -- including trading for Norris Trophy-winning defenseman P.K. Subban and signing power forward Wayne Simmonds -- to accelerate the rebuild and convince Hall to stay. The winger, however, wants to be thorough in his decision-making; he'll take his time to determine where he wants to play.

In a conversation with ESPN, Hall went into detail about his frustrating 2018-19 season, why mainstream marketing opportunities are difficult for NHL players, how he views the Devils and why he looks up to Kawhi Leonard and Patrick Mahomes.

On last season ...

It probably went as badly as it could have gone, personally, with the injury and all that. For our team, we had a lot of injuries. Guys didn't play the way they had wanted to. But sometimes in hockey it's better to be at the bottom of the standings than right close to the playoffs and not make it. So it afforded us the chance to get Jack [Hughes] and really sped up -- not the "rebuild" -- but sped up our timeline a little bit.

On his knee injury ...

Around the start of December, I started feeling it a little bit. Played through it and then sat out a couple games to rest because at that point we thought it was a muscular thing. Then I came back, and it felt OK. Had a couple pretty good games, actually. I thought I played pretty well. But the knee just didn't feel proper.

Then it was our Christmas break, and I vowed to myself to get this thing right and come back and play. It ended up being one of those things where you get an MRI and they don't see anything, you get another MRI and you send it to people around North America -- nobody sees anything. So eventually two months have passed. I've gotten a diagnosis that I have a tear in a little tendon around the area. I get that filled with PRP [injections]. And I'm like, "OK, that's the injury." Four weeks later, it hasn't resolved. I'm still feeling discomfort. So obviously that wasn't the injury. That was just a side effect of everything that was going on. You can have tears, and you can have stuff wrong in your body that isn't showing any symptoms and not giving you any pain.

So eventually, two months after the fact, we finally decided to go into the knee and find out what's going on. There's some loose pieces in there that they took out. Kind of put in some stuff to promote healing and put my knee in a better place for the future, and that's where we're at now.

On his mindset while sidelined ...

It was really, really hard. Even after the surgery, it was hard. There wasn't really a timeline after the surgery because it wasn't something that happens a lot. So it was, "You might feel good in a month. You might feel good in three months."

There was a period of probably five months there where everything was in limbo. But you keep working hard, you have people around you that you trust, people around you that you like working with. I wasn't traveling, but I was around the team. When they were at home, I was always here, went to all the games. At that point, I still thought I was going to be playing at the end of the season. Working hard in the weight room and all that type of thing. When the guys went on the road, those are some lonelier times. When you get to the rink, and there's nobody here, and it's quiet. You kind of have to make your own mojo and hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

On the P.K. Subban trade ...

I was out one night in Toronto, and I got a call -- I think it was from Ray [Shero]. Might have been John [Hynes, Devils coach]. I forget. They just straight-up asked what my thoughts were and what I had heard about him. I had nothing but good things to say. I knew that he obviously had a personality and all that -- that's all people want to talk about. But at the end of the day, he's a good hockey player. I'm at the NHL Awards in Vegas when I win my Award, and he's up for a Norris. And that didn't seem too long ago in my head. Everyone wants to talk about everything that comes with P.K., but from what I see, it's a guy that wants to come in and play well. I'll take that guy on my team any day.

On the Devils' roster needing more talent surrounding him ...

To be honest, there was never a time when I sat with Ray and I said, "This needs to get better." Nor did he ever ask me anything like that. When I came out in the media and said we need more talent, that was fairly obvious. I think I was saying something that wasn't news to anyone. I think everyone in the organization saw that this was a summer of opportunity with a lot of teams that were in cap trouble. Last year I was hoping they would make a splash in free agency, but looking back, there probably wasn't anybody worth chasing after.

They did a great job this summer. I don't ever look at it like they're making moves to satisfy me or they're doing things to make me happy. They're just trying to create the best team possible, and I want to be the best player possible on this team.

On Jack Hughes ...

He makes the game look easy. It doesn't look like his heart rate is too high when he's out there because he's so calm and poised with the puck. He's never panicking. His stride is pretty effortless. I'm really impressed with his shot. He has a better shot than I saw two years ago when I first skated with him. I honestly thought he could barely shoot the puck when he was 15 years old. That's only going to keep getting better.

On NHL players putting themselves out there ...

It's crazy when people say putting yourself out there makes you a distraction to the team. P.K. does a lot, and he hasn't distracted me once all week from doing my job. At the end of the day, we're in the entertainment business. I think Ray said that when he traded for P.K.

There's nothing wrong with some personality. Come to the rink every day, and you see the same people, and they're saying the same things and all that, but there's nothing wrong with a little bit of pizzazz and some changeup.

On whether winning MVP opened the door for more marketing opportunities ...

There were some things, but they were more like one-offs. Like, "Hey, do an ad for Subway," and that's it. I think there was one for Great Clips, a hair-cutting place. But not really. It doesn't seem like companies get what they want from the hockey market. I think they like working with the players themselves because we're easy to work with, but it doesn't seem like the consumer is going to buy stuff because a hockey player is doing it. But if LeBron James just tweets about it, everyone goes crazy.

On improving the Q rating for hockey players ...

There's gotta be an algorithm or something to figure that out because I can't tell you. But just the more exposure ... we have such a great game. Playoff hockey, when I talk to American people specifically, they love it. They love the intensity. They love everything about it. It's like, how can we get them fixated on it all year long? Week 1 of the NFL, it felt like the Super Bowl was going on. Everyone wanted to watch it. Hopefully the NHL can get there.

On the 2019-20 season ...

My goal is to play 82 games this season and hopefully set myself on the right path for the rest of my career.

On being a free agent this summer and if being on a Stanley Cup contender is a priority ...

I think that's probably the highest priority. Lifestyle-wise, I'm not married or anything. I don't have kids. I'm not really at a point in my career where location matters to me, if I want to be on the West Coast or East Coast or anything like that. You can make any city great if you're playing well and you're winning there. So that's basically my priority.

On how he has grown ...

I think the coaching staff and management here have pushed me to be not a better leader but a different leader. There's a maturation process that happens when you get traded and also as you're getting older. You look at yourself in the mirror and say, "I want to be a better practice player."

My offseason habits haven't changed one bit. I work out with a different trainer, but I still work just as hard. Just around the rink, I feel like I have more focus. I'm a little more dialed in on how I need to be every day, whether it's practice or a game. And whether that's management, coaches here, maturation or just getting traded, I do feel like a different person, and that's a good thing.

On athletes he looks up to ...

I love Kawhi [Leonard]. Being from Toronto, I loved watching him this year. That was really cool. I know some people who are around him, and hearing some inside stories about what he's like and all that is very cool. His personality is so polarizing, and he has a presence about him.

Patrick Mahomes is pretty cool. He's impressive to watch. Off his back foot, 50 yards, and he fits it in a 5-yard window where his guy is going to catch it. It's pretty cool. He's just so talented and just goes out and plays. He has a lot of talent around him, but he's probably one of the best athletes in the world right now. If he didn't play in Kansas City -- like, if he played in L.A. or New York -- he'd probably be even bigger.

On being a football fan ...

I like watching on Sundays, but I'm not a fan of a team. My dad played football [in the CFL]. I love watching, but I don't love the NFL philosophy. They're very hard on the players, and there's a lot of injuries. It seems like everyone is mad all the time. I don't know if it's true, but that's what it seems like. I watch "QB1" on Netflix. I think that's a great series. I watched "Last Chance U" too.

On one fix to make the NHL better ...

A 78-game regular season. It'd be one fewer game a month, basically. Maybe 76 or 78. Just dial it back a little bit. Instead of playing 15 games in March, like we do, make it 14. You'd get one more day off. I think that would be nice.

Sebastian Munoz earned $946,666 in 26 events last season on the PGA Tour. Thanks to his win at the Sanderson Farms Championship, he surpassed that total in one tournament. Here's a breakdown of prize money and FedExCup points for winner Munoz and the rest of the players who made the cut in Mississippi.