British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing start to his career under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output likely gained him a split decision in a tight 10-round bout at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, connecting with powerful individual punches in a fight where the techniques didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching disrupting the contest.
Two judges scored it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95.
"It wasn't my best performance but what do champions do? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was faced boos from the spectators.
The Londoner returned to winning ways after his first professional defeat - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in last winter - to claim a twentieth professional win.
Several boxing experts believed the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the victory but the Derbyshire fighter endured the second loss of his 28-bout career.
Buatsi Claims Triumph in Dull Match
His career development has slowed in recent years through contract problems and considerable time of lack of fights.
Earlier forecast as the next star of British boxing, he now stands trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He started carefully, with both competitors willing to take risks in a calculated early stages.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury during the bout, was competing in only his second bout at light-heavyweight.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had kept it close, making life awkward for Buatsi, who worked behind a protective stance to narrowly win the cleaner periods.
The audience's tolerance wore thin amid frequent holding, with Parker falling to the floor several times during grappling.
The underdog closed well, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. However, ex-champion Carl Frampton - commentating on the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for Parker, giving Buatsi just one round.
Buatsi moves on, but with the presence of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Russian champion Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the road to world glory - judging by this showing - still looks steep.
Hatton Memorial Motivates Manchester Derby Battle
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur defeated Bradley Rea by close verdict in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester contest to capture the continental championship.
The stadium grew hushed for a extremely emotional tribute ahead of the contest as ten bells tolled in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in September.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the urban center since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the quiet became a shout of "only one Ricky Hatton".
The fighting inside the ropes matched the emotion. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a significant blow directly to the jaw in the early round, getting up unsteadily to his footing on the referee's count.
But the Manchester United-red shorts of the fighter soon came forward again. From the other corner, the opponent - in rival City blue - was injured quickly, heavy swelling forming under his eye as the fighters landed powerful shots.
Rea, 27, landed power punches but the champion, 34, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the decision with scoring tallies of 114-114, narrow lead and clearer margin, but each competitor were persistent and brave, everything their inspiration the legend embodied.
