It's tempting to think that Martin Truex Jr. has clouds hanging over him similar to the ones that enshrouded Watkins Glen International.

Only it's been overcast in Truex's career for a good bit of the time since June 4, 2007, when he won a NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. He finished 11th in the point standings that year. Through 2009, Truex competed for Dale Earnhardt Inc. He now drives the No. 56 NAPA Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing.

In the past three years, Truex has finished 15th, 23rd and 22nd, respectively, in the standings. Entering the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen, he ranked 22nd.

"Bad luck is a tough thing," Truex said. "I've had my share of it the past few years.

"People say you make your own luck, and you do, somewhat. But there are times when there is nothing you can do about it."

Truex, 31, doesn't have much to show for the current season. He finished sixth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the season's third race. Since then he has collected eighth-place finishes at Dover, Infineon (Sonoma, Calif.) and Loudon, N.H.

"Luck plays a big part in what we do," said the Mayetta, N.J., native. "It takes a million things to go right to win of these races. It only takes one to go wrong ... a flat tire, the caution coming at the wrong time, a debris caution after you pit under green ... things like that.

"There are some things where it doesn't matter what you do, you can't change them -- and that's luck. And it's tough to deal with, especially when you've had a good day and your team's done everything right."

At this point, making the Chase is outside the realm of practical consideration.

"You have to just forget about last week, move forward, try to do the best you can with what you have and you know when your team is doing good and when they're not," said Truex. "You just have to forget about all those bad things and push forward and work on the things you can control."