UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing start to his career under fresh promotional backing with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level likely gained him a majority decision in a tight 10-round contest at the boxing arena.
But Parker found success, landing some telling clean blows in a contest where the styles didn't complement each other, with excessive holding disrupting the contest.
The scoring judges judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the remaining official a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best performance but what defines champions? They win," Buatsi commented in the ring as he was greeted with disapproval from the audience.
The British fighter bounced back after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to secure a 20th pro success.
Several boxing experts felt the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the victory but the British boxer experienced the second defeat of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Claims Victory in Dull Match
Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent years through management issues and considerable time of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the future of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what feels like a last chance - under recent support.
He began cautiously, with both competitors prepared to overcommit in a tentative initial rounds.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against his former opponent in two years ago after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was competing in only his second appearance at light-heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, Parker had made it competitive, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who utilized a protective stance to edge the better stanzas.
The crowd's patience decreased during regular grabbing, with the challenger falling to the floor multiple occasions during close exchanges.
The underdog closed well, but many rounds were challenging to assess. Although, ex-champion Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it particularly wide for Parker, awarding Buatsi just a single round.
The victor moves on, but with the presence of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the road to world glory - judging by this showing - still looks steep.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Motivates Local Rivalry Fight
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Rea by close verdict in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester fight to capture the continental championship.
The venue became quiet for a profoundly moving tribute before the fight as 10 bells sounded in remembrance of Manchester's own Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the city since Hatton's passing. As the final chime faded, the quiet became a chant of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".
The competition inside the ropes equaled the emotion. Arthur was floored by a significant blow squarely on the face in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the referee's count.
But the red-colored attire of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, Rea - in competitive blue - was damaged soon, significant bruising developing under his face as the fighters traded punishing blows.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but the champion, 34, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the intensity seldom decreased over the full distance.
Arthur narrowly won the result with official scores of draw, close margin and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, all the qualities their idol Hatton represented.
