British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing beginning to life under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output likely gained him a split decision in a tight ten-round contest at the boxing arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, landing some telling clean blows in a contest where the techniques never quite clicked, with constant grabbing disrupting the contest.
The scoring judges scored it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the third a even score.
"It wasn't my greatest showing but how do champions respond? They prevail," the victor stated in the ring as he was met by negative reactions from the audience.
The British fighter got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to earn a 20th pro success.
Several boxing experts believed Parker, thirty-one, should have been awarded the win but the contender experienced the second setback of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Claims Triumph in Uneventful Match
His career development has slowed in the past few years through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.
Previously predicted as the next star of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - maybe in what feels like a last chance - under fresh management.
He opened tentatively, with both competitors ready to be aggressive in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after suffering a hand injury in the contest, was participating in his second fight at the higher weight class.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for Buatsi, who utilized a solid defense to barely take the cleaner periods.
The audience's tolerance decreased amid regular grabbing, with Parker going down several times during grappling.
The underdog closed well, but many rounds were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - providing analysis for the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor moves on, but with the caliber of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - judging by this showing - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Homage Motivates Manchester Derby Fight
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur defeated Rea by split-decision in a terrific all-Manchester battle to win the European light heavyweight title.
The arena became quiet for a extremely emotional tribute before the fight as ten bells tolled in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who succumbed aged 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised match card in the city since the passing of Hatton. As the final chime faded, the silence became a chant of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".
The competition during the bout equaled the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a left hook flush on the face in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his position on the count of eight.
But the red-colored equipment of Arthur soon advanced again. From the other corner, Rea - in opposing blue - was injured quickly, noticeable damage appearing under his eye as the pair landed punishing blows.
Rea, 27, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, thirty-four, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the pace hardly diminished over the full distance.
The victor narrowly won the verdict with official scores of draw, 115-113 and 115-112, but both fighters were determined and courageous, everything their idol the legend embodied.
