I think I might be alone in thinking this year is a free swing for Hocker. Expectations should be low for his first year as a pro and he should frame it as a transition year and anything more is a bonus. It's a much more important year for Kerr. He's at his peak and now needs to back up his Olympic medal. He's still talking big, so the motivation seems to be there. I'm guessing he won't race much and all focus will be on Eugene. They have similar strengths as runners but I expect Kerr will have more global medals at the end of his career, at the minute, he just has a better ability to kick off a hard pace. But it also wouldn't be a huge surprise if Hocker surpasses him either. The bigger surprise would be if either of them ever beats Ingebrigtsen in a race.
On another point, it was interesting how Rojo was defining a better career. He said he thought Hocker would have a better career because he'd be relevant longer, emphasizing his range, even if he didn't win medals. I think that's true, Hocker could be making Olympic teams into his early 30s. It's just interesting to see that kind of take, seeing running as a job more than a chance at being the best. Is success really just staying in the sport and finishing 6th?
Final point: the World Champs will not be a super fast race. Everyone seems to be forgetting just how special the Tokyo track is. Eugene hasn't produced any amazing times as yet, other than Jeruto's clean WR in the steeple. I think it's more likely we'll see the 1500 won in 3:29-3:30, maybe even 3:31