UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet underwhelming start to life under fresh promotional backing with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a tight ten-round contest at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger found success, delivering effective single shots in a match where the styles failed to mesh, with frequent clinching disrupting the fight.
The officials scored it 96-94 in favor to Buatsi, with the third a even score.
"It wasn't my best performance but what defines champions? They prevail," Buatsi stated in the arena as he was greeted with negative reactions from the spectators.
The Londoner bounced back after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with Callum Smith in last winter - to secure a 20th pro success.
Several boxing experts believed Parker, 31, should have been awarded the victory but the British boxer experienced the second loss of his 28-bout professional journey.
The Champion Claims Victory in Slow Match
His career development has slowed in recent years through management issues and long spells of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the rising talent of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - perhaps in what seems like a ultimate opportunity - under new promotional backing.
He opened tentatively, with neither fighter willing to take risks in a calculated early stages.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after breaking his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second bout at light-heavyweight.
By the middle rounds, Parker had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to barely take the better periods.
The crowd's patience wore thin because of regular grabbing, with Parker slipping to the canvas various instances during clinches.
Parker closed well, but several stanzas were hard to judge. Although, ex-champion the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.
The victor progresses, but with the caliber of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian champion Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Inspires Local Rivalry Fight
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur defeated Rea by divided decision in a excellent local rivalry contest to secure the continental belt.
The arena grew hushed for a extremely emotional memorial before the fight as a bell ceremony rang in honor of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who died at age 46 in September.
It was the initial significant broadcast match card in the city since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell faded, the quiet became a shout of "there's just one Hatton".
The action during the bout matched the emotion. Arthur was sent to the canvas by a left hook flush on the chin in the second round, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.
But the red-colored attire of the fighter soon came forward again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in opposing blue - was marked up early, noticeable damage forming under his orbital area as the duo traded powerful shots.
Rea, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, 34, fought fire with fire with stinging uppercuts as the intensity hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
The victor narrowly won the result with scoring tallies of 114-114, 115-113 and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, all the qualities their inspiration the legend stood for.
