BRISTOL, Tenn. -- Kyle Busch put his fingers in his ears. He didn't need to hear the boos as they showered down on him more than the confetti in the makeshift Bristol Motor Speedway Victory Lane.
He heard those boos earlier Saturday in driver introductions. He feeds off them.
"Make the noise," he said. "Who cares?"
Busch might care. A little. Very, very little. But he has won enough trophies not to sweat it. He long ago knew he wouldn't have the biggest fan base. He's a Busch. And he wins. A lot.
He hears the boos every time he wins in the Camping World Truck Series or the Xfinity Series -- the candy-sponsored driver taking candy from the kids. But even when he wins at the Cup level, the fans are going to be giving him the No. 1 salute.
Busch never reveled in the boos more than he did Saturday, enjoying the boos for the third time in four nights at Bristol as he completed the weekend sweep of truck, Xfinity and Cup races for the second time in his career.
"I knew there would be the heckles for sure," Busch said after his 40th career Cup victory and sixth at Bristol. "My fans are great and amazing, but there's no way all of my fans are going to be able to fill Bristol Motor Speedway.
"The best of the best that have won here have been booed for a long, long time. I'm fine with that."
Having taken a broom and standing atop his car to "sweep" his roof, and putting his fingers in his ears -- as well as showing three fingers to the crowd to commemorate the three wins -- was a spur-of-the-moment tweak to his haters. In the past, he has put his hands up by his eyes to mimic crying.
It was a reaction that seemed perfect for the moment. Just like his moves on the track.
Those moves that he makes at the spur of the moment either earn him trophies or put him on a wrecker. The key to his 2015 Cup championship came when he missed the first 11 races because of an injury and left the rest of the season up to fate in the sense he took what each track gave him and didn't overdrive the car.
Going for the sweep Saturday, his crew chief's biggest worry was that his bad habits would bite him.
"That's something you worry about when you have an extra layer on top of a normal race as a crew chief," crew chief Adam Stevens said. "You need to keep him focused and make sure that he's not elevating his risk level too much at making mistakes.
"I think he did a really good job of being aggressive but really mitigating the risk. There was times that he could have pushed and he may have given somebody an inch. He really did a great job of keeping the big picture in mind."
The Joe Gibbs Racing team didn't make the best adjustments overnight, said Busch, who started 18th. He had to hold back when he felt tires vibrating and not push the issue before he could pit. He also had to back off the throttle coming off pit road to avoid damage and lost spots. Busch kept the car clean enough that he had a strong car for the final sprint to the finish.
"It is an extra level of stress in my seat because it is such a big deal in the sport and such a big deal to him," Stevens said. "There really is only so much you can do. It's not like I'm going to pull something out of my hat. It was pretty cool to see him accomplish that."
Busch led the final 55 laps after battling future Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Erik Jones, who sought his first career Cup win and led a race-high 260 laps. JGR drivers Denny Hamlin and Matt Kenseth followed Busch and Jones across the finish line.
Hamlin said he could see Busch on a mission with the sweep on the line. While Busch had completed the sweep in 2010, he failed in his quest in 2013.
"He gets excited over those things -- the statistical things probably more than the average guys," Hamlin said. "That's what makes him great, also."
But it's more than an attitude.
"In my mind, at least the last three years, Kyle has been the same," Kenseth said. "He's pretty focused. He's obviously one of the most talented guys in the garage.
"Since he got with Adam, they've just been lights out. They've been the best out of our four cars typically more times than not, especially here the last few months. They're on a roll as far as performance and they're getting the finishes now too."
Some are not so impressed. Busch said at a Toyota appearance earlier in the day, a fan gave him the middle finger the whole time. Busch acknowledged him, saying he knows he's No. 1, and he got a double-dose of the middle finger.
"To me I don't know that it's necessarily whether or not you have the most fans or the most followers -- to me it's just about being able to go out there and put on a show for those that are buying tickets and being a part of it," Busch said.
"I know Rowdy Nation is pretty strong. ... I'm sure [the rest] are still booing and whining and crying all the way home."