LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The late John Asher got a kick out of calling the 2004 Kentucky Derby “the demolition derby” until higher-ups informed him to stop doing so, lest customers get the wrong idea. This was during the massive overhaul that left much of the Churchill Downs grandstand in a state of reconstruction during the year Smarty Jones won the Derby. Asher, sadly, died in 2018 and is no longer around to see how Churchill once again is in the middle of a huge project that will go on hiatus this week so that the 149th Kentucky Derby can be run next Saturday without too much inconvenience. “This is Phase One,” said track spokesman Darren Rogers. “We have tried to keep obstructions during Derby week to an absolute minimum. Our goal is to make the Derby experience for fans this year as enjoyable as possible, just as it’s always been.” The most noticeable new attraction is a sunken-in paddock with far more elbow room than the former one. It will eventually become the centerpiece of a $200 million redesign that, for now, leaves a huge amount of empty space for patrons in the plaza area from where the famed twin spires are in plain sight. Seating in the grandstand and clubhouse essentially remain unaffected, while a new $90 million First Turn section can accommodate more than 5,000 fans. :: Take your handicapping to the next level and play with FREE DRF Past Performances - Formulator or Classic.  Construction in and around the paddock area will resume in earnest as Phase Two following the Derby, with a temporary paddock and jockeys’ trailer already having been prepared on the outer perimeter of the racetrack near the six-furlong pole. The entire project is scheduled for completion ahead of the 150th Derby on May 4, 2024. After this year’s Derby, those temporary facilities will be in use when Churchill mostly runs Thursday through Sunday for the balance of May before adding Wednesdays through meet’s end, July 3. Ahead of the Derby, Churchill opens the 44-day spring meet Saturday night with a 10-race card, the latter portion of which will be run under the lights first used in 2009. Record-level purses remain a driving force behind the Kentucky circuit mounting a persistent challenge to New York for national supremacy, as all Kentucky tracks, including Churchill, continue to divert huge revenues from the slots-like historical horse-racing machines that have proliferated in the state into their purse structures. A spring-meet schedule of 50 stakes worth more than $20 million begins Saturday night with the $175,000 Roxelana, a six-furlong race for which Frank’s Rockette will be heavily favored over five other fillies and mares. The $3 million Derby is the linchpin of a very busy week that features five other Grade 1 events, including the Kentucky Oaks on Friday and the Old Forester Turf Classic as the traditional Derby lead-in. Churchill is dark the first two Sundays of the meet (April 30 and May 7). The five-day Derby week runs Tuesday through Derby Day. Overnight purses are the real eye-catcher. Maiden-specials offer a base purse of $120,000, even after the Derby, while allowances start at $127,000. All Churchill purses include substantial bonuses restricted to registered Kentucky-breds. Many of the top jockeys and trainers based in New York and elsewhere will be here during Derby week – just like they were at the Keeneland meet, which was to end Friday – but after that, Tyler Gaffalione figures to further his reign as the perennial leading jockey on the circuit. Steve Asmussen and Brad Cox, as usual, are the top contenders for leading trainer. :: Bet the races on DRF Bets! Sign up with code WINNING to get a $250 Deposit Match, $10 Free Bet, and FREE DRF Formulator.  One trouble spot of recent times at Churchill has been the seven-furlong turf course, which was used sparingly last year following a $10 million reconstruction that began in 2021. Problems with the grass not having matured sufficiently have eased considerably following a winter’s rest, according to track officials, with turf workouts in limited numbers having resumed last Thursday. “Time has done the turf course well,” said Rogers. Two turf events (races 6 and 8) are scheduled for the Saturday night opener, while some of the traditional turf stakes that had to be scrapped the last year or two are being renewed. The Saturday opener is the first of three night cards at the meet, with May 19 and June 17 to follow. Otherwise, regular first post will be 12:45 p.m. Eastern. All post-Derby racing on Thursdays will start at 5. First post on Oaks and Derby days is 10:30 a.m. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.