British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet underwhelming debut to life under fresh promotional backing with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output seemingly secured him a majority decision in a competitive ten-round fight at the boxing arena.
But the challenger had his moments, landing some telling individual punches in a fight where the techniques never quite clicked, with frequent clinching spoiling the action.
The officials judged it 96-94 to Buatsi, with the remaining official a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my finest performance but what defines champions? They succeed," Buatsi said in the ringside as he was greeted with boos from the spectators.
The Londoner bounced back after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a 20th career victory.
Several boxing experts felt Parker, 31, merited the victory but the contender experienced the second loss of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Claims Win in Dull Affair
Buatsi's progress has slowed in the past few years through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the next star of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He started carefully, with neither fighter ready to take risks in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in two years ago after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was making just his second fight at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had kept it close, making life awkward for Buatsi, who worked behind a tight guard to barely take the better rounds.
The spectators' acceptance decreased amid regular grabbing, with the challenger going down multiple occasions during close exchanges.
Parker closed well, but many rounds were difficult to score. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just only one stanza.
Buatsi progresses, but with the presence of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - based on this performance - still seems difficult.
Ricky Hatton Memorial Motivates Local Rivalry Contest
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur defeated Bradley Rea by close verdict in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester battle to secure the European light heavyweight belt.
The arena fell silent for a profoundly moving homage before the fight as 10 bells sounded in remembrance of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in recently.
It was the initial significant broadcast fight night in the location since Hatton's death. As the last bell ended, the silence became a shout of "there's only one Hatton".
The fighting within the ring matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a powerful punch squarely on the chin in the early round, standing uncertainly to his feet on the referee's count.
But the Manchester United-red equipment of the fighter soon advanced again. Across the ring, Rea - in competitive blue - was damaged quickly, significant bruising forming under his eye as the pair landed hard punches.
Rea, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, 34, matched the intensity with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over twelve rounds.
The victor narrowly won the verdict with judges scorecards of 114-114, narrow lead and clearer margin, but the two athletes were persistent and courageous, all the qualities their idol the legend embodied.
