British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet disappointing beginning to life under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a close 10-round bout at the boxing arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, landing some telling individual punches in a contest where the approaches didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching disrupting the fight.
Two judges had it 96-94 in favor to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95.
"It wasn't my best display but what do champions do? They prevail," Buatsi stated in the ringside as he was met by negative reactions from the crowd.
The British fighter bounced back after his initial pro loss - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in February - to secure a twentieth professional win.
Some ringside observers believed Parker, thirty-one, should have been awarded the win but the British boxer endured the second defeat of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Claims Victory in Slow Match
The fighter's advancement has stalled in recent times through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the rising talent of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what seems like a last chance - under fresh management.
He began cautiously, with both competitors willing to take risks in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose only previous defeat came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after damaging his hand during the bout, was participating in his second fight at light-heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had made it competitive, causing problems for Buatsi, who worked behind a protective stance to narrowly win the more effective rounds.
The audience's tolerance diminished because of frequent holding, with Parker falling to the floor various instances during clinches.
The underdog finished the stronger, but several stanzas were difficult to score. Although, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - commentating on Dazn - had it significantly in favor for Parker, awarding Buatsi just one round.
Buatsi moves on, but with the presence of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian champion Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the road to world glory - judging by this showing - still looks steep.
Ricky Hatton Homage Motivates Manchester Derby Battle
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Rea by close verdict in a outstanding local rivalry contest to secure the European light-heavyweight title.
The venue became quiet for a deeply poignant homage ahead of the contest as 10 bells tolled in remembrance of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised fight night in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the concluding sound disappeared, the quiet transitioned to a chant of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The competition inside the ropes matched the feeling. Arthur was knocked down by a significant blow directly to the chin in the initial stage, standing uncertainly to his position on the count of eight.
But the red-colored attire of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, Rea - in opposing blue - was marked up quickly, significant bruising appearing under his face as the fighters traded hard punches.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, thirty-four, responded in kind with powerful upward punches as the action rarely dropped over 12 rounds.
Arthur edged the verdict with judges scorecards of even score, 115-113 and clearer margin, but each competitor were relentless and courageous, everything their hero Hatton represented.
