British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet unimpressive start to his career under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output seemingly secured him a judges' verdict in a tight 10-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger landed significant shots, delivering effective single shots in a match where the approaches failed to mesh, with excessive holding disrupting the contest.
Two judges scored it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a even score.
"It wasn't my greatest performance but how do champions respond? They succeed," the victor stated in the ringside as he was greeted with boos from the crowd.
The British fighter got back to winning after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a 20th pro success.
Some ringside observers believed the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the victory but the Derbyshire fighter endured the second defeat of his 28-bout professional journey.
Buatsi Earns Triumph in Slow Affair
The fighter's advancement has stalled in recent times through promotional disputes and long spells of lack of fights.
Earlier forecast as the next star of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He began cautiously, with both competitors ready to be aggressive in a tentative early stages.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was making just his second appearance at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to barely take the cleaner stanzas.
The crowd's patience decreased amid constant clinching, with the challenger falling to the floor multiple occasions during grappling.
The underdog closed well, but several stanzas were difficult to score. Although, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - providing analysis for Dazn - had it particularly wide for Parker, awarding Buatsi just a single round.
Buatsi progresses, but with the presence of power puncher Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still looks steep.
Ricky Hatton Memorial Motivates Manchester Derby Contest
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur defeated Rea by close verdict in a terrific all-Manchester contest to win the European light heavyweight title.
The stadium became quiet for a deeply poignant homage ahead of the contest as 10 bells tolled in memory of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who died aged 46 in last month.
It was the initial significant broadcast boxing event in the location since Hatton's passing. As the last bell ended, the quiet transitioned to a shout of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The action during the bout matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a significant blow directly to the chin in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his position on the referee's count.
But the Manchester United-red shorts of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. Across the ring, the opponent - in opposing blue - was damaged soon, noticeable damage developing under his orbital area as the duo exchanged hard punches.
The challenger, 27, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, 34, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the intensity hardly diminished over the full distance.
Arthur edged the result with scoring tallies of draw, narrow lead and 115-112, but each competitor were relentless and courageous, all the qualities their hero the legend stood for.
