British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet underwhelming debut to life under new promoters with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output likely gained him a judges' verdict in a close 10-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger landed significant shots, connecting with powerful single shots in a contest where the styles didn't complement each other, with constant grabbing spoiling the fight.
The scoring judges scored it 96-94 for to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95.
"It wasn't my greatest display but what defines champions? They succeed," Buatsi commented in the ring as he was faced boos from the spectators.
The British fighter got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an epic battle with his previous opponent in last winter - to earn a 20th pro success.
Several boxing experts believed Parker, 31, merited the win but the British boxer endured the second loss of his 28-match career.
Buatsi Secures Victory in Slow Match
The fighter's advancement has stalled in recent times through contract problems and extended periods of lack of fights.
Previously predicted as the rising talent of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - maybe in what seems like a last chance - under new promotional backing.
He started carefully, with neither fighter ready to take risks in a tentative early stages.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at the lower weight class against John Ryder in 2022 after breaking his hand mid-fight, was participating in his second appearance at light-heavyweight.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, creating difficulties for the favorite, who operated with a tight guard to edge the more effective stanzas.
The crowd's patience wore thin during frequent holding, with the challenger slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during clinches.
The underdog closed well, but many rounds were challenging to assess. Although, ex-champion Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, giving Buatsi just only one stanza.
Buatsi moves on, but with the presence of hard hitter Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - based on this performance - still looks steep.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Motivates All-Manchester Fight
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a outstanding Manchester vs Manchester battle to capture the European light-heavyweight championship.
The stadium fell silent for a extremely emotional homage prior to the bout as ten bells rang in honor of local hero Ricky Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in recently.
It was the initial significant broadcast fight night in the city since Hatton's death. As the final chime ended, the silence became a roar of "only one Ricky Hatton".
The fighting within the ring matched the sentiment. Arthur was knocked down by a significant blow directly to the face in the second round, rising shakily to his footing on the count of eight.
But the Manchester United-red attire of Arthur soon came forward again. From the other corner, Rea - in rival City blue - was damaged quickly, noticeable damage appearing under his face as the pair traded powerful shots.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the intensity hardly diminished over the full distance.
Arthur edged the decision with official scores of 114-114, close margin and 115-112, but both fighters were determined and courageous, exactly what their inspiration Hatton represented.
