British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing beginning to his career under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's activity level likely gained him a judges' verdict in a competitive ten-round fight at the boxing arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, delivering effective clean blows in a match where the techniques didn't complement each other, with excessive holding marring the fight.
The officials scored it 96-94 in favor to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my finest performance but what defines champions? They win," the victor stated in the arena as he was met by negative reactions from the crowd.
The British fighter bounced back after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in February - to secure a 20th career victory.
Some ringside observers believed the challenger, 31, deserved the win but the Derbyshire fighter suffered the second defeat of his 28-fight career.
Buatsi Secures Victory in Uneventful Match
The fighter's advancement has slowed in recent years through contract problems and long spells of inactivity.
Once tipped as the rising talent of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what seems like a ultimate opportunity - under new promotional backing.
He opened tentatively, with the two boxers ready to be aggressive in a tentative initial rounds.
Parker, whose only previous defeat came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand during the bout, was participating in his second fight at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had kept it close, causing problems for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to narrowly win the better stanzas.
The spectators' acceptance diminished during regular grabbing, with Parker going down several times during clinches.
Parker ended stronger, but many rounds were hard to judge. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - commentating on the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just one round.
Buatsi moves on, but with the likes of power puncher David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Memorial Fuels Manchester Derby Contest
In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by split-decision in a terrific all-Manchester contest to win the European light heavyweight championship.
The stadium fell silent for a profoundly moving memorial prior to the bout as ten bells tolled in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in last month.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the city since Hatton's passing. As the final chime ended, the quiet gave way to a shout of "there's only one Hatton".
The competition inside the ropes matched the feeling. Arthur was sent to the canvas by a significant blow flush on the jaw in the initial stage, rising shakily to his feet on the count of eight.
But the red-colored equipment of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. Across the ring, Rea - in rival City blue - was marked up soon, noticeable damage appearing under his eye as the pair traded punishing blows.
Rea, 27, connected with strong blows but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the pace rarely dropped over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the decision with judges scorecards of 114-114, narrow lead and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and brave, everything their idol Hatton stood for.
