Josh Kerr is bracing for a "real battle" to defend his world 1500-metres title after qualifying second from his semifinal behind 20-year-old Dutch upstart Niels Laros.
The Scot led for almost the entirety of the first heat in Tokyo but was beaten after a jostling finish, which ended with Laros crossing three hundredths of a second quicker in 3:35.50.
Jake Wightman, the 2022 gold medallist, qualified from the same heat third in 3:35.56, and Neil Gourley scraped through the second semifinal in 3:36.93 to make it a trio of Scots in Wednesday's final.
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"I have my work cut out for me, but I feel pretty confident," Kerr said.
"We're getting places. I would say it's one of the most confident I've gone into a world final. But each championships bring their own kind of challenges and fun, and I'll keep doing what I can to show up and medal and go after the gold.
"It's my title, it will be a real battle for whoever wants to come take it off of me, and I [need to] keep an eye on the last lap. I'm going to get some work done."