British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive debut to life under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output seemingly secured him a judges' verdict in a tight ten-round bout at the boxing arena.
But Parker found success, landing some telling clean blows in a fight where the styles didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching disrupting the action.
The officials judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best performance but what defines champions? They prevail," Buatsi said in the ring as he was faced boos from the audience.
The British fighter got back to winning after his initial pro loss - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in February - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Various analysts felt the challenger, 31, should have been awarded the decision but the Derbyshire fighter endured the second setback of his 28-fight career.
The Champion Earns Win in Uneventful Match
Buatsi's progress has plateaued in the past few years through contract problems and considerable time of inactivity.
Previously predicted as the future of UK boxing, he now stands trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what appears to be a last chance - under fresh management.
He started carefully, with both competitors prepared to be aggressive in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose only previous defeat came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second fight at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had stayed in contention, causing problems for Buatsi, who operated with a tight guard to narrowly win the better stanzas.
The crowd's patience wore thin amid frequent holding, with Parker going down several times during grappling.
The underdog finished the stronger, but multiple periods were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, former world champion the boxing analyst - providing analysis for the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.
The victor moves on, but with the caliber of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian champion Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still looks steep.
Hatton Homage Inspires All-Manchester Battle
In the supporting bout, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a outstanding local rivalry fight to secure the European light heavyweight belt.
The stadium became quiet for a profoundly moving tribute ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony tolled in honor of local hero Hatton, who died at age 46 in last month.
It was the first major televised boxing event in the location since Hatton's passing. As the final chime disappeared, the stillness gave way to a roar of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The action inside the ropes matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a powerful punch flush on the jaw in the initial stage, rising shakily to his footing on the referee's count.
But the traditional red shorts of Arthur soon advanced again. On the opposite side, Rea - in competitive blue - was marked up soon, heavy swelling appearing under his face as the pair traded hard punches.
The challenger, twenty-seven, landed power punches but the champion, 34, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over twelve rounds.
Arthur barely secured the result with scoring tallies of even score, narrow lead and clearer margin, but the two athletes were relentless and brave, all the qualities their idol Hatton stood for.
