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 Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a close ten-round bout at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger found success, connecting with powerful clean blows in a fight where the approaches never quite clicked, with constant grabbing spoiling the fight.
The officials scored it 96-94 to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95.
"It wasn't my greatest display but what do champions do? They succeed," the victor stated in the ring as he was greeted with disapproval from the audience.
The Londoner bounced back after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Various analysts believed Parker, 31, deserved the win but the British boxer suffered the second defeat of his 28-match professional journey.
The Champion Earns Victory in Slow Match
His career development has plateaued in the past few years through management issues and considerable time of inactivity.
Once tipped as the next star of UK boxing, he now stands trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He opened tentatively, with the two boxers prepared to take risks in a cagey initial rounds.
Parker, whose only previous defeat came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after breaking his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second bout at light heavyweight.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to narrowly win the cleaner periods.
The spectators' acceptance wore thin during frequent holding, with Parker slipping to the canvas several times during grappling.
Parker closed well, but many rounds were difficult to score. However, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.
Buatsi moves on, but with the presence of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still seems difficult.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Motivates Local Rivalry Fight
In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester battle to secure the European light-heavyweight championship.
The arena became quiet for a extremely emotional memorial ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony tolled in memory of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who succumbed aged 46 in last month.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the urban center since the passing of Hatton. As the final chime disappeared, the stillness became a chant of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The competition during the bout equaled the feeling. Arthur was floored by a significant blow directly to the chin in the early round, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the eight count.
But the traditional red shorts of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. Across the ring, Rea - in competitive blue - was damaged early, significant bruising developing under his orbital area as the pair landed powerful shots.
Rea, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, thirty-four, responded in kind with stinging uppercuts as the intensity rarely dropped over twelve rounds.
The victor narrowly won the result with judges scorecards of even score, close margin and wider gap, but each competitor were determined and courageous, all the qualities their idol Hatton represented.
