It's important to understand the terminology that is being used here. In science, an hypothesis is a scientific explanation of certain observed facts. And it's one that is testable by experiment or by searching for other information that will either support or contradict the hypothesis.
When an hypothesis has been tested, repeatedly, and survives, it becomes known as a theory. A theory is as good as it ever gets in the world of science. It's still subject to further tests, but until it's toppled by new evidence, it's at the pinnacle of the hierarchy of scientific ideas.
So when the Pope says that evolution is "more than an hypothesis," he's making a very significant statement. He's saying that evolution is a scientific theory that's survived a whole lot of testing for a very long time, and it's not something that we can dismiss or disregard. Instead, he's saying that the church has to deal with it, and they can't interpret scripture in such a way as to deny it.
I understand what your saying, but I researched that very thing last night. What I found clearly suggests that the Pope is scientifically naive, and that he would not believe in a theory of evolution which would remove an intelligent designer. He will not believe in a theory that alleges to disprove God. In fact, this is a distinction that Catholic Church wants to make clear after his 1996 statement. The Church warns about misinterpretation of his position.