British number one Johanna Konta says she received more recognition for her exchange with a journalist at Wimbledon last month than she got for reaching the semi-finals at SW19 two years ago.

Konta, 28, was frustrated by questions about her mentality after her quarter-final defeat by Barbora Strycova.

The incident in July sparked fierce debate but Konta says she tried to ignore the reaction.

"It's hard to not notice the traction it got," she said before the US Open.

"I was walking down the street and one woman shouted down from a balcony, 'Good on you'," she said.

Keen to put the exchange with the journalist behind her, a laughing Konta added: "That was a new experience.

"I got a lot of recognition after that. I got more recognition after this Wimbledon than 2017 when I had a massive viewership for my quarter-final so I don't know why."

Konta, speaking before her first-round match against Daria Kasatkina at Flushing Meadows on Monday, has had opening-round defeats in Toronto and Cincinnati since Wimbledon.

The US Open is the only Grand Slam where she has not reached the semi-finals, having gone as far as the last 16 in 2015 and 2016.

"If you take a zoomed in look at it I haven't played many matches since Wimbledon. However, if you take the season as a whole I've played over 50 matches," said Konta, who reached clay-court finals in Rabat and Rome earlier this year.

"So I've played a lot of matches and won quite a lot of them as well, which is a good position to be in."

Ireland were "underdone and heavy-legged" in their humbling 57-15 defeat by England says head coach Joe Schmidt.

The eight-try loss comes less than a month before Ireland begin their World Cup campaign against Scotland in Yokohama.

"What really matters is in four weeks time," said Schmidt.

"You do get some disproportionate scores (in warm-ups), but we weren't good enough today."

Only New Zealand have inflicted a heavier defeat on Ireland, who are seeking to bring some momentum into their World Cup campaign following a lacklustre Six Nations.

At Twickenham, Ireland took the lead through a Jordan Larmour try but were outplayed in every facet of play from the moment Joe Cokanasiga crossed for England.

"There's a litany of things that were most disappointing," said Schmidt.

"We fell off 34 tackles.

"There was a little bit of positive (in the first quarter), but that score before half-time was key."

Healy ankle sprained but not broken

Ireland's misery was compounded by an ankle injury which forced loose-head prop Cian Healy from the field shortly before half-time.

After the game Schmidt confirmed that Healy ankle was sprained but not broken.

There was also concern for Conor Murray who required a Head Injury Assessment (HIA) following a collision with England wing Jonny May.

Having passed the HIA the Munster scrum-half returned to the fray but was replaced by Luke McGrath at half-time.

Ireland are still hopeful that Joey Carbery, who suffered an ankle injury in their opening warm-up game against Italy, will be fully fit for their Pool A opener on 22 September.

Watch highlights as England produce a dominant performance and run in eight tries as they hammer Ireland 57-15 in the World Cup warm-up match at Twickenham.

MATCH REPORT: England thrash Ireland by record margin

Watch extended highlights on iPlayer here

ALTON, Va. – Max Root is no stranger to the front of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama field at Virginia Int’l Raceway, as he led the race here last year in the No. 7 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup machine.

But Root paid his first visit to the top step of the podium Saturday in challenging conditions during the first race of the weekend at the 3.27-mile, 17-turn circuit. As the race was declared wet by IMSA officials, every car in the field was running on Yokohama rain tires, but portions of the track dried throughout the 45-minute race.

Root managed to chase down points leader Roman De Angelis in the No. 79 Kelly-Moss Road and Race Porsche – who started the race from the pole position and held the lead from the drop of the green flag – with just over three minutes remaining. Once the 20-year-old Californian got the lead, he quickly checked out, taking the checkered flag 35.889 seconds ahead of De Angelis to get his first win.

“It was an amazing race,” Root said. “Those were interesting conditions, something we could have never predicted, but we made those Yokohamas go as far as they could. Driving on a dry/wet track with wet tires was interesting. I couldn’t have done it without the Wright Motorsports guys and all my sponsors.”

With the runner-up result, De Angelis still holds a comfortable 65-point lead, 379-314, over Root in the season championship standings in the Platinum Cup class for Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Cars built between 2017 and 2019. De Angelis now has finished either first or second in all 11 races to date this year.

Fred Poordad made it two Wright Motorsports entries on the overall podium in the No. 20 Porsche and took the class victory in the Platinum Masters class for drivers 45 years of age or over. Poordad – who also won a race here at VIR last year – also earned the race’s Yokohama Hard Charger Award as the Platinum Cup driver who improved the most positions from start to finish. He started 15th on the overall grid.

“We had a disappointing qualifying, at least I did,” Poordad said. “I thought, ‘Wow, from where we’re starting there’s not a lot I can do but keep it clean.’ But we plugged away one car at a time. Wright Motorsports gave me an incredible car today. It felt very planted. It didn’t even feel like it was wet out there. Hats off to Yokohama Tires as well, because those tires lasted me the entire race. I felt like I could have gone another 20 minutes on them.

“I’m happy today. Happy for Wright Motorsports with a couple of podiums and happy for my teammates as well.”

Jeff Mosing finished second in Platinum Masters and fourth overall in the No. 68 Topp Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup machine. Alan Metni finished third in the Platinum Masters class in the No. 99 AM Motorsports/Kelly-Moss Porsche and now leads the class point standings by 21 points, 348-327, over Poordad.

Rob Ferriol drove the No. 5 Moorespeed entry to his second career victory in the Gold Cup class for Porsche 911 GT3 Cup machines built between 2014 and 2016. Ferriol took the lead when class points leader Sebastian Carazo spun in the Oak Tree Turn with less than 17 minutes remaining in the race.

Ferriol then held off Carazo – especially through an intense final lap – to win by 0.365 seconds.

“My plan for the day was conservative,” Ferriol said. “Bring the car home. Make it to the checkered. These rain races, things happen. So, I figured I’d keep it close to the front and stay consistent and smart, and maybe the race would come to me. And it did.”

Carazo ended up second and continues to lead the Gold Cup standings by 38 points, 371-333, over Ferriol. Efrin Castro finished third in Gold Cup aboard the No. 65 ACI Motorsports Porsche.

ROUGEMONT, N.C. – The CARS Tour has released tentative 2020 schedules for its late model stock and super late model divisions.

Both divisions will open the season at Southern National Motorsports Park in Kenly, N.C., with $10,000-to-win features for both classes on March 7.

Hickory Motor Speedway will host the CARS Tour twice, with both divisions visiting the historic North Carolina venue on March 21 and again on Aug. 1 for the fourth edition of the Throwback 276.

Orange County Speedway is back on the CARS Tour schedule with two events. The first will take place April 4-5 and feature the late model stock division battling for a $30,000 payday during the Old North State Nationals. Both division will head back to Orange County on Aug. 22 for a pair of $10,000-to-win features.

The late model stock division will have three standalone events in the months of May and June, with Ace Speedway (May 1), Langley Speedway (June 6) and Dominion Raceway (June 20) hosting the tour.

The super late model division will tentatively take the months of May and June off before returning for the tours inaugural trip to Pennsylvania’s Jennerstown Speedway for a $20,000-to-win show on July 4.

Another standalone event for the late model stock tour is scheduled for July 11 at Carteret County Speedway before the previously mentioned events at Hickory on Aug. 1 and Orange County on Aug. 22.

The season will conclude for both divisions on Sept. 12 at Virginia’s South Boston Speedway.

The only track that appeared on the schedule this season that is absent from the 2020 schedule is Virginia’s Motor Mile Speedway.

CARS Tour officials indicated that additional events for both classes could be added at a later date.

ALTON, Va. – How close was the 15-minute qualifying session for Sunday’s Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia Int’l Raceway?

Try 0.078 seconds between first and second and 0.156 seconds between first and third.

WeatherTech Championship GT Le Mans points leader Laurens Vanthoor picked up his second IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship pole, driving the No. 912 Porsche GT Team 911 RSR to the best lap of one minute, 40.630 seconds (116.982 mph). Vanthoor did that lap with just over two minutes remaining in the session and brought the car into the pits instead of taking the checkered flag on the racetrack.

That’s when Jan Magnussen sped by in the No. 3 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C7.R with a lap of 1:40.708 (116.892 mph), just barely missing Vanthoor’s pole time. A few seconds later, here came Ryan Briscoe in the No. 67 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT with a lap of 1:40.786 (116.801 mph) also just missing the pole.

Was Vanthoor concerned that he pitted early?

“I was, but my engineer wasn’t,” Vanthoor laughed. “I made a mistake in Corner 1, and he directly saw I was down, but I made it up a little bit afterward. The time was going to be close to where I was and I knew I could maybe improve, but he was confident that I should box. We’re starting on these tires tomorrow and it’s going to be a long race and a long first stint, probably, so he opted that it was enough and wanted to save the tires. So, I trusted him and luckily he was right.”

Vanthoor’s previous pole also came in a GT-only WeatherTech Championship race, at Lime Rock Park earlier this year for the Northeast Grand Prix. He and co-driver Earl Bamber go into Sunday’s race leading the GTLM championship standings by 14 points, 248-234, over their teammates, Nick Tandy and Patrick Pilet in the No. 911 Porsche.

“It’s our second pole and we’re leading the championship with three races to go,” Vanthoor said. “We have a bit of a points lead, but that can go away quickly. We need to maximize every weekend and be safe and get on the podium. Starting from the pole is the best way to defend.”

Magnussen and his No. 3 co-driver, Antonio Garcia, who won back-to-back races here at VIR in 2016 and 2017, are looking for their first WeatherTech Championship GTLM win since then. Briscoe and his No. 67 co-driver, Richard Westbrook, have won the last two GTLM races – at Lime Rock and Road America – and look for their third straight on Sunday.

Joey Hand qualified fourth in the No. 66 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT at 1:40.956 (116.604 mph) and Oliver Gavin completed the top five with a lap of 1:41.578 (115.890 mph) in the No. 4 Corvette Racing C7.R.

Zacharie Robichon proved that every lap counts during his IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship qualifying performance in the GT Daytona division.

Driving the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, Robichon earned the GT Daytona class Motul Pole Award on the final lap of the 15-minute session. His time of one minute, 45.826 seconds (111.238 mph) bumped Frankie Montecalvo from the top spot by just .324 seconds, which Montecalvo posted only one lap prior.

Tomorrow will be the second time Robichon leads the WeatherTech Championship GT Daytona class to green this season. He was awarded the top spot at the Detroit Grand Prix in June following a disqualification of the initial pole winner.

“I mean credit goes out to the team on this one,” said Robichon, who will be co-driving with Scott Hargrove in Sunday’s Michelin GT Challenge. “They made the right call. They got the timing right. I think we got the extra lap on everybody else. I was just a tenth behind before that, but I think because of that last lap we were able to put it in. It was a little bit exciting.”

Robichon and the Pfaff Motorsports team are currently riding a winning streak. They scored back-to-back victories at Lime Rock Park last month and Road America three weeks ago. Robichon and Hargrove will be seeking their first victory as co-drivers, with Robichon winning alongside Dennis Olsen at Lime Rock and with Matt Campbell at Road America.

“It was a new team at the beginning of the year, and we’ve been able to come together as a team,” said Robichon. “We’ve been working together now as a crew at this level, and everybody knows their task, everybody is executing perfectly. The potential has been there all along, but we’ve finally been able to start hitting our stride.”

Montecalvo’s time in the No. 12 AIM Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3, ultimately held on for the outside front row starting spot. His teammate Richard Heistand in the No. 14 Lexus will start third.

A pair of Acura NSX GT3s swept the fourth and fifth positions, with Trent Hindman in the No. 86 Acura for Meyer Shank Racing posting the fourth quick time and Alice Powell, in her IMSA debut, earning the fifth spot in the No. 57 Heinricher Racing with Meyer Shank Racing Acura.

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – The Trans-Am Series presented by Pirelli championship took a dramatic turn in the series’ 47th visit to Road America in Saturday’s Ryan Companies 100.

Ernie Francis Jr. scored his third victory of the season and took the TA class championship lead in the No. 98 Breathless Racing Frameless Shower Doors Ford Mustang. Boris Said came home second, while Cliff Ebben completed the podium, with the Wisconsin driver of the No. 36 Stumpf Ford/Machavern Group/Lamers Racing Ford Mustang prevailing in a spirited late-race battle with Amy Ruman in the No. 23 McNichols Co. Chevrolet Corvette.

Francis run to victory followed a torrid early battle with pole sitter Chris Dyson in the No. 20 Plaid Ford Mustang.

The two cars were running within a half-second of each other before Dyson spun in his race-leading Mustang on the 10th lap in turn five of the 4-mile circuit. The spin gave the lead to Francis, who was closely followed by popular veteran Boris Said in the No. 3 Elavon/Burtin Racing Chevrolet Camaro. Francis gradually built his advantage, winning over Said by 35.842 seconds.

“It was a real good race between Chris and I,” said Francis, who made it two-in-a-row after winning at Mid-Ohio. “We were going back and forth with the fastest lap. Then lapped traffic began to play a factor, and I was able to close in a little bit and put on the pressure. Then, coming into the brake zone for Turn 5, he got a little too much wheel hop into it, and I was able to go around.

“After that, I was able to pull out a gap and maintain a decent pace to take it home for the finish,” continued Francis. “I was keeping an eye on Boris. It was really great for points this weekend, and I couldn’t be prouder of the guys at Breathless Racing preparing the Frameless Shower Doors Mustang. The car was awesome all weekend. These are the kind of results we need at the end of the season, trying to pull out a championship.”

Dyson entered Saturday with a five-point lead over Francis in the standings. However, the New Yorker began experiencing problems early in the race.

“Unfortunately, we had a brake problem that was developing early on,” Dyson explained. “It’s a shame, but around this place you’ve got to have your brakes working right. We had speed today. We were quick, even with the brakes not quite right. I’m frustrated with myself, and I’m frustrated for the team, but you can’t drive this place if the car’s not stopping right.”

Dyson picked up a puncture on the early 10 spin and pitted. He worked his way back to eighth but spun again in Turn 5 on Lap 18, sustaining terminal right-front damage.

“We put a new left-rear on and went back out,” Dyson said. “The brakes seemed to have come back, but then they rapidly, rapidly faded, and I was braking earlier and earlier. Then I got down to Turn 5, hit the brakes, and I had nothing. Rather than take out Cindi Lux in the car in front of us, I just ditched and grazed the wall, trying to minimize the damage.”

Said was only three seconds behind the leaders when Dyson had his initial spin, but he also had mechanical problems down the stretch.

“I thought I had something for Ernie, but then we had a gearbox issue,” Said explained. “In the end, I only had fifth gear and was nursing it to the finish.”

Denny Lamers was the TA Masters winner, finishing eighth in the No. 66 Stumpf Ford/Machavern Group/Lamers Racing Ford Mustang.

Tim Kezman made a winning SGT debut in the No. 64 Fall-Line Motorsports Lemons of Love Audi R8 LMS.

“We jumped out front and had a pretty good run,” Kezman said. “I had some pressure early on, but I stayed the course. The car was great. My first time in this car was in practice on Friday, and the Audi is a fun car to drive. Fall-Line does an amazing job preparing the car. We had some issues with traffic, but we managed to keep it clean and bring it home in one piece.”

Kezeman won at Indianapolis in a Fall-Line Porsche, and finished third in that car at Mid-Ohio.

“I’ll be at the next race at Watkins Glen,” Kezman said. “I’ll probably be back in the Audi, because I think it will be a great car for The Glen.”

Ken Twaits finished second in the No. 5 Wilwood Brakes/Franklin Road Apparel Audi R8 LMS. Jason Daskalos completed the podium in the No. 27 Vintage 423 Dodge Viper, followed by SGT points leader Mark Boden in the No. 46 Fall-Line Racing Beverage Flavors International Porsche 991 GT3.

Jeff Courtney, the lone entrant in the GT class, finished 22nd overall to score his second victory of the season in the 99 Matrix/RecStuff.com/Kendra Maserati GT4.

MANCHESTER, England -- Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said he is "lost for words" after a second Manchester United player was racially abused on social media.

Marcus Rashford was sent a series of racist tweets after missing a penalty during the team's 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on Saturday, just five days after similar incidents involving Paul Pogba.

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"It's the same as we spoke about before the weekend; it needs to stop," Solskjaer said at a news conference. "I'm just lost for words. They keep hiding behind fake IDs and it's crazy we talk about this in 2019."

Rashford missed from the spot in the second half after Jordan Ayew had scored after 32 minutes, marking Palace's first league goal at Old Trafford in 15 years.

Daniel James eventually equalised two minutes from time, only for Patrick van Aanholt to score the winner in the third minute of injury time after beating David De Gea at his near post.

"I think we didn't have enough urgency and penetration," said Solskjaer. "[The first goal] was one long kick, such an easy goal, and the last goal, David has not touched the ball [all game] and they score again. Sometimes that'll be the case -- teams will come here and defend against us."

Solskjaer said he was also frustrated by referee Paul Tierney's decision to punish Gary Cahill with just a yellow card in the first half after he pulled back Anthony Martial when the Frenchman looked to be through on goal.

The Norwegian also felt his team should have been awarded a penalty when Martial appeared to be fouled by Martin Kelly in the area -- a decision that was not overturned by the VAR.

"I think we were unlucky with Martial's clear and obvious penalty," said Solskjaer. "It's a nailed on one and when the ref sees the game he'll know he's not had his best. It's a nailed on penalty, he won't slip if he doesn't have a centre back on his shoulders."

United lost Luke Shaw to an injury in the first half, but Solskjaer hopes it is not serious ahead of next Saturday's trip to Southampton, Shaw's former club.

"We'll do the scans tomorrow, but he felt something in his hamstring," Solskjaer said. "Hopefully, it won't be too bad and I hope he is going to be back for Southampton."