No matter how many facts you pump into your argument, pound-for-pound lists are subjective. The boxing world is jam-packed with fantastic fighters and depending on what you prefer, your list can be shaped in a certain way.

For Bernard Hopkins, he’s always been a student of the game. It helps that he was a former multi-divisional champion and recently inducted Hall of Famer. When recently asked to name who he considers the best fighter in the world, Hopkins paused for a second before going into deep thought.

There’s a bevy of names to choose from. Of course, there’s Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez. Also, who can forget about Tyson Fury, Oleksandr Usyk, and Naoya Inoue? Their all deserving, but for Hopkins, neither of those fighters took the top spot on his list.

“Tank Davis,” Hopkins told ESNEWS.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis recently closed the curtains on his 2023, but not before putting together a terrific year.

To kick things off, Hector Luis Garcia stepped up both to the plate and up in weight. But, despite promising to stop the hype train, Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) wasn’t perturbed by his man’s words and would ultimately go on to stop the Dominican before the championship rounds.

Garcia, however, was just the appetizer before Davis went on to the main course. A few months after separating him from his consciousness, Davis squared off against Ryan Garcia. Bernard Hopkins, who works closely with Garcia, was confident that his young fighter was going to get the job done.

In the end, while he publicly backed the 25-year-old, Davis made the former champ eat his words. Outside of a few close rounds, Davis dominated, dropping Garcia on two occasions before eventually stopping him in the seventh.

With blood dripping down his nose as he remained on one knee, Hopkins couldn’t believe what he just witnessed. His 2023 campaign may have consisted of just two fights but the Baltimore native’s lopsided victory over a fighter that Hopkins watched develop, has him completely convinced that Davis is the best fighter in the world.

“Because of how he executed Ryan Garcia.”