British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet underwhelming debut to his career under fresh promotional backing with a points victory over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a tight ten-round contest at the Co-op Live Arena.
But Parker had his moments, delivering effective clean blows in a contest where the approaches never quite clicked, with frequent clinching marring the fight.
Two judges judged it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best showing but what defines champions? They win," Buatsi commented in the arena as he was met by boos from the crowd.
The Londoner got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in last winter - to claim a twentieth professional win.
Several boxing experts felt the challenger, 31, deserved the victory but the contender endured the second loss of his 28-bout professional journey.
Buatsi Secures Win in Uneventful Encounter
Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent years through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.
Once tipped as the next star of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - maybe in what feels like a last chance - under recent support.
He started carefully, with both competitors ready to overcommit in a tentative initial rounds.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at the lower weight class against his former opponent in 2022 after damaging his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second fight at light heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, Parker had stayed in contention, making life awkward for the favorite, who worked behind a protective stance to barely take the cleaner rounds.
The spectators' acceptance decreased during frequent holding, with Parker going down several times during grappling.
Parker ended stronger, but many rounds were difficult to score. Although, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for Parker, giving Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor moves on, but with the presence of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the road to world glory - based on this performance - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Motivates Local Rivalry Battle
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur overcame Rea by close verdict in a outstanding all-Manchester fight to capture the continental belt.
The venue became quiet for a deeply poignant homage before the fight as ten bells rang in memory of local hero Hatton, who passed away 46 years old in last month.
It was the first major televised boxing event in the city since Hatton's passing. As the concluding sound faded, the stillness transitioned to a chant of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".
The action inside the ropes matched the sentiment. Arthur was floored by a left hook flush on the jaw in the early round, rising shakily to his feet on the count of eight.
But the traditional red equipment of Arthur soon advanced again. From the other corner, the opponent - in opposing blue - was damaged early, noticeable damage forming under his orbital area as the duo exchanged hard punches.
Rea, 27, landed power punches but Arthur, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over the full distance.
Arthur edged the verdict with official scores of draw, narrow lead and 115-112, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, exactly what their inspiration the legend embodied.
