UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive beginning to his career under fresh promotional backing with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate appeared to earn him a majority decision in a close ten-round bout at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger found success, delivering effective individual punches in a fight where the techniques never quite clicked, with excessive holding spoiling the contest.
The scoring judges judged it 96-94 to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95.
"It wasn't my finest display but how do champions respond? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was met by disapproval from the audience.
The British fighter returned to winning ways after his initial pro loss - an epic battle with his previous opponent in February - to earn a 20th career victory.
Various analysts felt Parker, 31, merited the victory but the British boxer suffered the second defeat of his 28-fight career.
The Champion Claims Victory in Slow Match
His career development has stalled in the past few years through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the future of the British fight scene, he now stands trying to achieve expectations - possibly in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He opened tentatively, with both competitors ready to be aggressive in a calculated initial rounds.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was competing in only his second fight at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had kept it close, making life awkward for the favorite, who operated with a tight guard to edge the cleaner periods.
The crowd's patience decreased amid constant clinching, with the challenger going down various instances during clinches.
The underdog closed well, but many rounds were hard to judge. Although, ex-champion Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor progresses, but with the caliber of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian star Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - on this evidence - still looks steep.
Hatton Homage Inspires Local Rivalry Fight
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur overcame Rea by divided decision in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester battle to capture the European light heavyweight title.
The venue became quiet for a deeply poignant memorial before the fight as ten bells rang in memory of local hero Ricky Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in September.
It was the initial significant broadcast boxing event in the urban center since Hatton's death. As the last bell faded, the quiet became a roar of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The action within the ring matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a powerful punch directly to the face in the early round, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.
But the red-colored attire of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. From the other corner, Rea - in rival City blue - was marked up quickly, significant bruising appearing under his orbital area as the pair traded punishing blows.
The challenger, 27, landed power punches but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the intensity hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the verdict with official scores of even score, 115-113 and clearer margin, but each competitor were determined and full of heart, exactly what their inspiration Hatton represented.
