UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet disappointing beginning to his career under fresh promotional backing with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level seemingly secured him a majority decision in a tight ten-round fight at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger found success, landing some telling clean blows in a match where the styles failed to mesh, with frequent clinching disrupting the contest.
Two judges scored it 96-94 to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best performance but how do champions respond? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was met by negative reactions from the audience.
The British fighter returned to winning ways after his maiden career setback - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in last winter - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Various analysts believed the challenger, thirty-one, merited the win but the British boxer endured the second defeat of his 28-match professional journey.
The Champion Secures Victory in Slow Match
Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent times through contract problems and extended periods of lack of fights.
Once tipped as the next star of British boxing, he now is positioned trying to achieve expectations - possibly in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.
He began cautiously, with the two boxers willing to overcommit in a cagey initial rounds.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury during the bout, was competing in only his second fight at light-heavyweight.
By the middle rounds, Parker had stayed in contention, making life awkward for Buatsi, who worked behind a solid defense to narrowly win the more effective rounds.
The audience's tolerance diminished because of constant clinching, with the challenger going down various instances during close exchanges.
Parker finished the stronger, but multiple periods were hard to judge. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with Dazn - had it particularly wide for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just one round.
The victor progresses, but with the presence of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still looks steep.
Hatton Tribute Inspires All-Manchester Battle
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a outstanding local rivalry contest to capture the continental championship.
The venue became quiet for a extremely emotional memorial before the fight as a bell ceremony sounded in memory of the city's native Hatton, who succumbed aged 46 in last month.
It was the premier televised fight night in the city since Hatton's passing. As the concluding sound faded, the quiet transitioned to a roar of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The action inside the ropes matched the feeling. Arthur was knocked down by a left hook flush on the chin in the initial stage, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.
But the traditional red shorts of Arthur soon came forward again. From the other corner, Rea - in competitive blue - was marked up soon, noticeable damage forming under his eye as the duo landed powerful shots.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over 12 rounds.
Arthur barely secured the verdict with judges scorecards of draw, 115-113 and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, all the qualities their hero Hatton represented.
