Turnbull Racing still has a handle on the IMCA modified points lead at Estevan Motor Speedway, though not in the way anyone would have expected going into Monday's races.Aaron Turnbull, who led his brother Tyson by 12 points at the start of Monday's event, was disqualified during his heat race and prevented from starting the feature.Combined with the night's feature results the DQ dropped Aaron to fifth in the standings, 26 points back of Tyson for the lead with one race remaining."That's the whole thing I've been going for all year and I had a pretty good handle on it," Aaron said Tuesday morning. "All I had to do was finish the next two races and a little overreaction by an overpowering official basically ended my season."Aaron's problems started when his window net came down during his heat race. He said he was black flagged for the infraction, which usually means a disqualification. However, he still expected to start the feature, albeit from the back of the pack.He says his pit crew then began waving him back toward the track but he was stopped by a track official who told him he would have to wait until the feature."I turned around to go back to my pit and they told me that I kicked up rocks when I was turning around," said Aaron. "I was trying to spin it around because it was such a tight space to get around and I didn't want to back up, but I guess I kicked up a couple rocks. They didn't like that so they thought they'd end my season."A Berry fine race for HankThe mod feature itself also ended with an unexpected result, as Hank Berry of Sidney, Mont. took advantage of a late misstep by Joey Galloway to claim his first win at Estevan since May 2009.Galloway led Berry by nearly a full straightaway through 18 laps but hit a tire in Turn 4 as it appeared he was trying to avoid lap traffic.The caution came out, Galloway could not continue the race, and Berry led the last seven laps to take the checkered flag."I don't know if I could have run him down," Berry said after the race. "I thought maybe I was creeping up on him a little bit but he was getting around there really good. Any time you're leading and something happens that sucks, but it was good for me I guess. I've had them go both ways."Berry had to hold off a hard-charging Devin Raynard, who finished second, and Tyson Turnbull, who finished third.A four-car collision that included a Chris Hortness rollover caused a caution with five laps to go, and the challengers got another shot at Berry's lead when another caution came out on Lap 23 of the 25-lap feature."It seemed like nobody was up high so it was either go up high or follow everyone down on the bottom," said Turnbull. "I usually run pretty good up high, I just can't drive quite as good as Hank."Turnbull was followed across the line by Minot, N.D.'s Joren Boyce, and the battle for the season title will likely come down to them when the Speedway holds its championship night Sept. 18.Turnbull has 276 points and leads Boyce -the 2003 and 2004 champion at EMS - by two. Also in the mix is Jim Harris, who finished 10th Monday but is only nine back of Turnbull.A win on championship night would make Boyce the first three-time champion in the Speedway's 11-year history.For Turnbull it would kill two birds with one stone."I'd much rather win a race than win a championship right now," he said Monday. "I haven't won a race in over two years and that's what I really want to do because to me the points system really isn't right the way they structure it."If you ask any of the drivers out here we'll talk about who's winning races. Most of these guys out here will be talking about the guy that won a race last week, not the guy that won a championship last year."Brandt wins No. 9If they were voting for most likely to do both at the final race of the season, Minot's Dana Brandt would take that title in a landslide.Brandt won his ninth race in 10 tries at Estevan this season on Monday, surviving a physical battle with Dallas Rice to take the IMCA hobby stock feature by a car length.Brandt and Rice traded paint for most of the first 10 laps Monday and again toward the end. Brandt now leads the standings with 389 points. Rice, who finished second Monday, is also second in points with 360.If Brandt starts the next feature at EMS he will clinch the championship regardless of his finish.The IMCA modified points race was not the only one to be shaken up Monday, however.IMCA stock car leader Nathan Burke did not compete, dropping to fourth in the standings after Joe Flory claimed Monday's feature.Flory now sits second with 289 points, five back of Rocky Alexander who finished seventh after encountering some traction issues at both ends of the track.Doar dominates late modelsHank Berry was also part of Monday's special attraction, the NLRA late model feature.But right from the get-go that proved to be a one-horse race.Pat Doar, hailing from New Richmond, Wisc., came from the back of the pack to win his heat race. He was awarded the pole position for the feature and led all 30 laps for his second win on the NLRA's Western Tour in as many nights.Doar hit lap traffic on Lap 7 of the 30-lap feature and led by over half the track at the time of the race's first caution on Lap 25.Even with the slow-down he managed to beat Winnipeg's Mike Balcaen across the finish by several seconds."We've been kind of on a roll the last three or four weeks," said Doar. "It looks kind of easy but we've struggled for a year. The car just came in, and the track was awesome."
