You know, the 150th Kentucky Derby is this Saturday.

And if you've ever been to Churchill Downs, you'll notice some changes this year after two years of renovations.

The much anticipated new paddock area is being revealed for the first time.

That $200 million project, more than doubles the space.

Our Kristie Dutton gives us an inside look and a little perspective.

The paddock is the heartbeat of any racetrack across the world.

Staying true to the heart of Churchill Downs can be tricky with such a big renovation that hopes to transform but also preserve.

It's a real fine line because you have a, you know, a historical landmark that is built off of, you know, history and tradition.

But at the same time, you want to bring it up to modern day amenities, amenities like two new clubs offering exclusive dining and unique paddock views.

You can literally sit at a table and watch a horse being saddled while you're eating your lunch.

The new paddock brings new experiences, but it also brings Churchill Downs historic icon back in focus.

Right from when you walked in through the gates, you're now going to see the horses and they're situated right beneath the twin spires, the twins fires that are.

It's our iconic symbol.

It's our the Nike swoosh, the the big McDonald's in the twin spires.

That's what we're known for.

And you see them, you know, front and center once again.

The new panic is the biggest construction undertaking in recent memory.

But in the 150 year Derby history, the paddock has evolved quite a bit from its humble beginnings.

The earliest paddocks were located just near the end of the grandstand.

And then that shifted behind as a wooden paddock in the 19 teens.

But the paddock wasn't always accessible to everyone.

There was actually a fence around the paddock for a very long time.

As the popularity of horse racing grew, the paddock became an important part to a day at the races.

That all changed in the 19 teens when spectators really started coming to Churchill Downs.

When the audiences got bigger, more excited, and people really were coming to see superstar Horses.

As the audience grew during the Roaring 1920s.

So did Churchill Downs, with major grandstand extensions and a reimagined paddock.

The 1923 paddock was a steel paddock, a steel frame paddock.

The earlier ones had been made of wood and the paddock was also relocated into the area where it stood basically until the 1980s.

The paddock built in 1985, was designed to accommodate an electronic tote board, an impressive upgrade at the time.

But the new paddock unveiled this Derby season takes it to the next level.

We now have 20 stalls and they're in a circular fashion.

We have a video board above each of the stalls that will tell the horse's name its odds, the jockey, the trainer.

So you know what you're looking at at all times.

You don't have to look back down at to program with all the paddock changes in the last 150 years.

There are still a few pieces of the past that remain like the original brick from the 1895 Grandstand wide and a part of history that has been repeated since the very first Kentucky Derby.

The one common experience that we have throughout the years with the evolution of the paddocks is the paddock runway, the tunnel leading to the track.

Every derby winners step through that tunnel.

Stepping through that tunnel also hoping to make history from Churchill Downs.

I'm Kristie Dutton.