British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet unimpressive beginning to his career under fresh promotional backing with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a majority decision in a tight 10-round bout at the boxing arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, landing some telling individual punches in a contest where the styles didn't complement each other, with constant grabbing disrupting the contest.
The scoring judges had it 96-94 for to the winner, with the third a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my greatest performance but what do champions do? They succeed," the victor commented in the ringside as he was greeted with boos from the crowd.
The Londoner returned to winning ways after his first professional defeat - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a twentieth professional win.
Some ringside observers felt the challenger, thirty-one, merited the victory but the contender suffered the second loss of his 28-bout career.
Buatsi Earns Win in Uneventful Match
His career development has stalled in recent years through management issues and considerable time of inactivity.
Previously predicted as the rising talent of the British fight scene, he now stands trying to fulfil that early promise - perhaps in what seems like a last chance - under new promotional backing.
He began cautiously, with the two boxers prepared to be aggressive in a cagey early stages.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second fight at light heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had made it competitive, causing problems for Buatsi, who worked behind a solid defense to narrowly win the more effective stanzas.
The audience's tolerance diminished because of frequent holding, with the challenger going down multiple occasions during clinches.
Parker ended stronger, but many rounds were hard to judge. However, former world champion the boxing analyst - commentating on Dazn - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.
Buatsi progresses, but with the likes of hard hitter Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - judging by this showing - still looks steep.
Hatton Homage Motivates Manchester Derby Fight
In the supporting bout, Arthur overcame Bradley Rea by split-decision in a excellent local rivalry battle to secure the continental belt.
The stadium became quiet for a profoundly moving homage prior to the bout as 10 bells tolled in remembrance of local hero Hatton, who died at age 46 in September.
It was the premier televised match card in the location since Hatton's death. As the final chime disappeared, the silence gave way to a roar of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The fighting inside the ropes matched the sentiment. Arthur was knocked down by a powerful punch flush on the face in the initial stage, rising shakily to his position on the eight count.
But the Manchester United-red shorts of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. Across the ring, the opponent - in opposing blue - was injured early, heavy swelling forming under his orbital area as the pair exchanged powerful shots.
Rea, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, thirty-four, matched the intensity with effective uppercuts as the intensity seldom decreased over the full distance.
The victor narrowly won the verdict with official scores of even score, close margin and clearer margin, but both fighters were determined and brave, everything their idol Hatton represented.
