British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet underwhelming beginning to life under fresh promotional backing with a points victory over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level seemingly secured him a split decision in a tight ten-round fight at the boxing arena.
But the challenger found success, connecting with powerful single shots in a contest where the techniques didn't complement each other, with constant grabbing spoiling the contest.
The scoring judges had it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95.
"It wasn't my finest performance but how do champions respond? They win," the victor said in the arena as he was greeted with negative reactions from the audience.
The British fighter got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an epic battle with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a 20th career victory.
Several boxing experts thought the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the victory but the British boxer suffered the second setback of his 28-match professional journey.
Buatsi Earns Triumph in Dull Match
His career development has stalled in the past few years through management issues and extended periods of inactivity.
Once tipped as the future of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - maybe in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.
He opened tentatively, with neither fighter willing to overcommit in a cagey opening few rounds.
Parker, whose only previous defeat came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after breaking his hand during the bout, was participating in his second appearance at light-heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had made it competitive, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a protective stance to narrowly win the better rounds.
The spectators' acceptance diminished because of regular grabbing, with the challenger going down various instances during grappling.
The underdog finished the stronger, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. Although, former world champion the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for Parker, awarding Buatsi just only one stanza.
Buatsi advances, but with the presence of power puncher Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol ruling the division, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still seems difficult.
Hatton Memorial Inspires Local Rivalry Fight
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Rea by split-decision in a outstanding all-Manchester fight to win the European light heavyweight belt.
The stadium became quiet for a deeply poignant memorial before the fight as a bell ceremony tolled in remembrance of Manchester's own Hatton, who succumbed aged 46 in September.
It was the first major televised boxing event in the location since Hatton's death. As the concluding sound disappeared, the stillness became a shout of "only one Hatton".
The fighting inside the ropes reflected the feeling. Arthur was floored by a left hook directly to the face in the early round, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.
But the traditional red equipment of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in rival City blue - was injured soon, significant bruising developing under his face as the fighters landed hard punches.
Rea, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but the champion, 34, fought fire with fire with stinging uppercuts as the action hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
Arthur edged the verdict with official scores of even score, 115-113 and clearer margin, but the two athletes were persistent and brave, exactly what their hero Hatton embodied.
