British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet disappointing debut to his career under recent management with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate likely gained him a split decision in a close 10-round contest at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger had his moments, delivering effective individual punches in a fight where the approaches never quite clicked, with frequent clinching marring the fight.
Two judges had it 96-94 to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my greatest performance but what do champions do? They win," the victor stated in the ringside as he was met by boos from the audience.
The Londoner got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with Callum Smith in last winter - to claim a twentieth professional win.
Various analysts believed the challenger, 31, should have been awarded the victory but the British boxer suffered the second loss of his 28-match professional journey.
Buatsi Claims Win in Dull Encounter
The fighter's advancement has plateaued in recent times through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.
Once tipped as the rising talent of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - possibly in what appears to be a last chance - under new promotional backing.
He started carefully, with both competitors ready to overcommit in a calculated initial rounds.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after damaging his hand during the bout, was making just his second fight at the higher weight class.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had made it competitive, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who utilized a solid defense to edge the better rounds.
The spectators' acceptance decreased because of constant clinching, with Parker going down various instances during clinches.
The underdog finished the stronger, but many rounds were difficult to score. Although, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - commentating on the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for Parker, awarding Buatsi just a single round.
The victor advances, but with the likes of heavy hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the road to world glory - based on this performance - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Fuels All-Manchester Contest
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur overcame Rea by close verdict in a excellent all-Manchester contest to secure the European light-heavyweight title.
The venue fell silent for a profoundly moving memorial prior to the bout as 10 bells rang in memory of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who died aged 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised fight night in the urban center since Hatton's passing. As the last bell disappeared, the silence gave way to a roar of "there's only one Hatton".
The fighting during the bout matched the emotion. Arthur was knocked down by a powerful punch directly to the jaw in the early round, getting up unsteadily to his footing on the count of eight.
But the red-colored equipment of Arthur soon came forward again. From the other corner, Rea - in competitive blue - was marked up early, significant bruising forming under his orbital area as the fighters exchanged powerful shots.
Rea, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but the champion, 34, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the intensity seldom decreased over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the verdict with judges scorecards of 114-114, 115-113 and wider gap, but the two athletes were relentless and brave, all the qualities their idol the legend embodied.
