Only boxers capable of testing Billy Joe Saunders are Golovkin and Canelo, says Tyson Fury

Tyson Fury believes either Gennady Golovkin or Canelo Alvarez should face Billy Joe Saunders next as they are the only boxers capable of testing him.

Saunders successfully defended his WBO middleweight title against David Lemieux via unanimous decision on Sunday (17 December) to take his unbeaten record to 26-0.

The Hertfordshire native has long called for a title unification fight with Golovkin, who holds the WBC, IBF, WBA and IBO middleweight titles, and even gate-crashed the Kazakh's press conference with Canelo back in June.

Following the duo's controversial split-decision draw in September, Saunders challenged Golovkin to a title unification bout for "all the belts"for December — however, based on the success of the first Canelo vs GGG fight, it looks like a rematch is still the priority for both camps.

Saunders instead, defended his title for the third time with his dominant win in Canada over Lemieux. His friend and former heavyweight champion Fury believes after a performance like that, he should only be fighting the elite now.

"After that performance, I'd say he needs to be tested by somebody like Golovkin or Canelo," Fury told FightHubTV. "They're really the only two guys who I think could give him a fight.

"You look at, people mention Danny Jacobs. Danny Jacobs is very similar to David Lemieux, and we saw what happened here tonight."

Following his win, Saunders proceeded to call out Golovkin and Canelo once again, stating that he is the best middleweight in the world and is ready to face either of them.

"I'm the best now. That's what [the victory] means," Saunders said after the fight. "I'm world champion, performing like a world champion.

"Golovkin or Canelo, I'm ready. Don't call me out when I'm fat and unfit and not in love with boxing. Fight me now, when I love boxing and I'm performing. Now fight me."

Saunders was barely touched during his win over the Canadian and even had time to showboat when Lemieux missed him with a powerful hook.

Fury adds that the best of Saunders is yet to be seen still and that his performances will only be further elevated when he faces top opposition.

"By no means was this the best of Billy Joe Saunders," Fury explained. "He's got all the levels, and we're going to see them, I think. Very much more to come.

"He boxed extremely well. The better opponent he faces, the better you'll see of Billy Joe Saunders."