SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Practical Joke remained undefeated around one turn - and at Saratoga - by working out a dream trip from the rail under Joel Rosario and running down pace-setting Takaful to win Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial by 1 1/4 lengths. Takaful, who got loose on the lead under Joe Ortiz, held second by 1 3/4 lengths over American Anthem, who nosed out Tale of Silence for third. Coal Front was fifth, followed, in order, by No Dozing, Phi Beta Express, Ann Arbor Eddie, and Wild Shot. This race was formerly run as the King’s Bishop, but was renamed this year in honor of the legendary Hall of Fame trainer Allen Jerkens. The win was the fifth from 10 career starts for Practical Joke, a son of Into Mischief owned by Seth Klarman’s Klaravich Stables and William Lawrence, and trained by Chad Brown. Practical Joke is now 5 for 5 in races run around one turn, including a Grade 1 win in the Hopeful here last summer and the Grade 1 Champagne at Belmont Park last October. He is 3 for 3 at Saratoga, also winning a maiden race here going six furlongs. Still, Practical Joke showed just enough talent around two turns to run in the Kentucky Derby, where he finished fifth, and the Haskell, where he was beaten just a half-length when third behind Girvin and McCraken last month. Saturday's race was Practical Joke’s third in seven weeks and Brown even skipped a work with him - just giving him one breeze between the Haskell and this race - to keep him fresh. “I’m so proud of this horse, he’s so versatile, it’s his third race in seven weeks and he just keeps showing up,” Brown said. “He’s our iron horse.” Brown was a bit concerned by the rail draw, but said Rosario told him not to worry because the horse had been breaking well from the gate in recent races and had been putting himself in a good early position. A new worry developed for Brown when some of the other speed didn’t go and Takaful was on an uncontested lead through a quarter in 22.36 seconds, and a half-mile in 45.05. But Rosario had Practical Joke within five lengths of the lead, cut the corner turning for home and moved into second place. Practical Joke took the lead just outside the eighth pole and polished off his third career Grade 1 victory. Practical Joke covered the seven furlongs in 1:21.96 and returned $6 as the slight favorite over American Anthem. “I was a little concerned they weren’t going quite fast enough, some of the other horses I anticipated going with him didn’t,” Brown said. “That worried me a bit, but once he came off the turn and had his momentum he looked a winner to me.” Ortiz, who rode Practical Joke to his Hopeful victory here last summer, said he had no complaints aboard Takaful and was simply second-best. “He broke well, put me where I wanted to be, reasonable fractions, but Practical Joke is a good horse,” Ortiz said. “The cutback helped him a lot and he’s been facing the best 3-year-olds going long.” Mike Smith, on American Anthem, said his horse was never running comfortably. “He didn’t show the speed I thought he would and I’m really having to ride him to keep up and around the turn he’s trying to get out just because I was trying to make him stay where he didn’t want to be,” Smith said. “I was happy that he ran third because I didn’t think he was even going to get that.”