The only thing better than a friendly rivalry is an entirely acrimonious rivalry.

The chummy, respectful rivalry in which the likes of Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal engaged for years was all well and good, but I’d take one where there’s pettiness and spitefulness and clear dislike over that any day of the week.

The latter is exactly this kind of acidic rivalry that’s developing between Josh Kerr and Jakob Ingebrigtsen.

I love it. And it’s exactly what track and field needs.

Kerr and Ingebrigtsen are currently the two best male 1500m runners on the planet and they will clash for the first time this summer when they both line-up in the Bowerman Mile at the Prefontaine Classic in Oregon on Saturday.

Ingebrigtsen, a 23-year-old from Norway, is Olympic champion at the distance and is the fastest 1500m runner of this generation.

Kerr, a 26-year-old Scot, is the reigning world 1500m champion.

The Edinburgh man held off Ingebrigtsen in the closing metres of the world championship final last August to take the title and while the competition on the track helps fuel this rivalry it’s the war-of-words they’re engaging in off the track that makes it quite so delicious.

For some time, it’s been clear that Kerr and Ingebrigtsen are far from best buddies.

And in the aftermath of Kerr’s World Championship win last August, the rivalry went up another level.

Kerr outsprinted Ingebrigtsen in the home straight to win gold in what was an almost........

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