SPARTA, Ky. _ If past is prologue, the loudest boos during driver introductions for Saturday night's Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway will be reserved for two men.
Fans will let Brad Keselowski have it.
But Kyle Busch will hear even louder boos.
While it is not unusual for the hard-charging Busch and Keselowski to get booed at NASCAR tracks, that it happens so vehemently at Kentucky carries a certain poignancy.
With two Quaker State 400 victories each, Busch, 31, and Keselowski, 32, have dominated Kentucky Speedway's Sprint Cup history.
"Any story line that starts at the top like that is really good," Kentucky Speedway general manager Mark Simendinger said. "And it gives the novice fan something to look at. If they come out, now they know what to look for. It's pretty easy to understand: Kyle Busch and Keselowski always do well at Kentucky Speedway."
Since Bruton Smith brought Cup racing to Sparta in 2011, Busch and Keselowski have wrestled fiercely for the crown of 'King of Kentucky.'
Busch's claim rests on being the only driver to win there in the four top stock-car series _ twice in Sprint Cup (2011 and '15), once in the Xfinity Series (2004), twice in trucks (2011 and '14) and once in ARCA (2003).
Keselowski's stake is based on having won a major race in Sparta for five straight years _ in addition to his two Sprint Cup wins (2012 and '14), he's been victorious three times (2011, '13 and '15) in the Xfinity Series race.
Together, the No. 18 car of Busch (437 laps) and the No. 2 of Keselowski (408) have combined to lead a whopping 63.5 percent of all Sprint Cup laps run at Kentucky Speedway.
"That track kind of personifies (the rivalry) between the two of us," Keselowski said. "I think we've had kind of equal success there. That's not a bad feeling whenever you can do that because Kyle has certainly done a great job throughout his career. So I'd like to get that 'one-more Sprint Cup win' so I could be above him."
Busch, for his part, says he has relished his success at Kentucky because he considered the old, famously bumpy racing surface one of NASCAR's toughest challenges.
"Entry to Turn 3 has been the trickiest corner for me, probably, on the circuit here," Busch said. "But I've made the most of my opportunities and been able to win here."
The fact it has taken two NASCAR mega-stars _ both Keselowski (2012) and Busch (2015) have Sprint Cup championships on their resumes _ to tame the challenges of Sparta has helped legitimize Kentucky Speedway as a worthy Cup Series track.
"When we've said in our advertising that 'the best love' (Kentucky Speedway), those two have proven it," Simendinger said.
