Sahih al-Bukhari 3656
صحيح البخاري#3656Sahihحَدَّثَنَا مُسْلِمُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، حَدَّثَنَا وُهَيْبٌ، حَدَّثَنَا أَيُّوبُ، عَنْ عِكْرِمَةَ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " وَلَوْ كُنْتُ مُتَّخِذًا مِنْ أُمَّتِي خَلِيلاً لاَتَّخَذْتُ، أَبَا بَكْرٍ وَلَكِنْ أَخِي وَصَاحِبِي ".
Narrated Ibn `Abbas:The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If I were to take a Khalil, I would have taken Abu Bakr, but he is my brother and my companion (in Islam)
Scholarly Authentication
The label above is the grade most of these scholars gave — one dissenting opinion no longer speaks for all of them. If any scholar calls a narration fabricated, that verdict is shown instead, whatever the others say. Each scholar's own wording:
Every narration in Sahih al-Bukhari is accepted as Sahih (authentic) by the established status of the book.
In-book reference: 62:8