Truex Jr. struggling but more than surviving heading into Las Vegas playoff race as he declares..

Not much has gone right for Martin Truex Jr. through the first six races of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, yet he’s survived the first two elimination races and is one of only eight drivers remaining in contention for the championship.

So he’s looking at it as gas tank half-full scenario heading into Sunday afternoon’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway even though his first six playoff finishes have been less than inspiring: 18th, 36th, 19th, 17th, 18th and 20th.

Despite those difficulties, Truex, buoyed by a strong regular season that included three wins — four if you count the exhibition Busch Light Clash — is second in points with four races left. He trails leader William Byron by five points. Of course, points won’t matter in the Nov. 5 season finale, when the champion will be whichever of the four finalists has the best finish at Phoenix Raceway.

“Stage points and bonus points certainly helped us a ton. I didn’t create the system. We used it to our advantage. That won’t get us through the next (elimination race). The next one, you’ve got to be running up front. Two winners of the next three races are probably going to be playoff guys that are still going. Need to turn it up, and we need to figure it out quickly,” the 1998 Southern Regional High School graduate said in a statement from Joe Gibbs Racing, the team for which he drives the No. 19 Toyota Camry.

“That’s the beauty, and that’s the thing that sucks about this deal, you know what I mean? I’m sure there are guys who are upset. They outran us enough to get in, but they didn’t have the bonus points. We have some really good tracks for us this round, so I’m hoping to go out to Vegas and have a good run this weekend, and we’ll fight hard the next three races and see where we land with our Bass Pro Shops Camry. Vegas was good for us in the spring, and I would expect us to run up front this weekend.”

Truex, who grew up in the Mayetta section of Stafford Township, finished seventh at Las Vegas on March 5. Sunday’s South Point 400 will consist of 267 laps (400 miles) on the 1.5-mile oval. In 23 Cup Series starts at Vegas, Truex has two wins, seven top-five finishes and 14 top-10s.

“Vegas is a great track that’s wide, and you can run all over. We saw a lot of guys run high the last three races there with the bumps,” said the 2017 Cup champion and three-time runner-up. “I feel like the car has evolved, and we’ve gotten better at being able to get through the bumps and move around. I expect it to be a great race out in Vegas. I love going out there, and it’s a great racetrack. The last couple of races there, we were in contention right to the very end with our … and were fighting for the lead and eventually the caution came out and the strategy didn’t work out.”

Truex described the racetrack as “an interesting place. It’s fast and high-speed and has tire falloff but, for whatever reason, it’s a place that has unique asphalt, and when the tires cool off you can fire off and run one or two fast laps. These days, with these cars, if you can get that clean air and get those two to three car lengths out front of guys that are on better tires behind you, and guys in-between you and the four-tire guys, you have a huge advantage for a few laps.

“It’s all about what the other guy does. You can be the only guy on two tires and you are a sitting duck, but if you have four to five guys behind you on two tires, you have a bit of a buffer and so it just depends on what goes on around you.”

Notes: NBC will televise the race. SiriuxXM NASCAR Radio also will carry it. … Stage 1 will consist of 80 laps, Stage 2 of 85 and the final stage 102. … Truex’s most recent win at Vegas came in 2019. … He has 34 career Cup wins, putting him in a tie with Kurt Busch for 25th all time. … In 32 points races this year, Truex has nine top-fives and 15 top-10s. He has led 832 laps. … The Oct. 22 race will be at Homestead-Miami Speedway, and the championship contenders will be cut from eight to four after the Oct. 29 race at Martinsville Speedway. … The other drivers still in championship contention: Byron, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Chris Buescher, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Ryan Blaney.