UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive beginning to life under recent management with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate seemingly secured him a judges' verdict in a close 10-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But Parker found success, delivering effective single shots in a fight where the approaches didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching disrupting the fight.
The scoring judges scored it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a even score.
"It wasn't my greatest display but what do champions do? They prevail," Buatsi said in the ringside as he was faced boos from the crowd.
The British fighter bounced back after his maiden career setback - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to claim a 20th career victory.
Various analysts felt the challenger, thirty-one, deserved the decision but the British boxer endured the second defeat of his 28-match professional journey.
Buatsi Earns Victory in Slow Encounter
His career development has plateaued in recent years through management issues and long spells of lack of fights.
Once tipped as the next star of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He began cautiously, with both competitors ready to be aggressive in a calculated initial rounds.
Parker, whose only previous defeat came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was making just his second bout at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had stayed in contention, creating difficulties for the favorite, who operated with a solid defense to edge the more effective periods.
The audience's tolerance wore thin amid frequent holding, with the challenger going down several times during clinches.
The underdog finished the stronger, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - providing analysis for Dazn - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just one round.
Buatsi advances, but with the likes of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Russian champion Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still looks steep.
Hatton Memorial Fuels All-Manchester Battle
In the supporting bout, Arthur defeated Rea by close verdict in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester battle to win the continental belt.
The arena grew hushed for a deeply poignant tribute ahead of the contest as ten bells rang in honor of local hero Hatton, who succumbed 46 years old in recently.
It was the initial significant broadcast fight night in the urban center since Hatton's passing. As the final chime ended, the quiet transitioned to a shout of "there's only one Hatton".
The fighting within the ring reflected the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a powerful punch directly to the chin in the second round, standing uncertainly to his footing on the eight count.
But the Manchester United-red attire of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in rival City blue - was damaged soon, noticeable damage developing under his eye as the fighters traded powerful shots.
Rea, 27, landed power punches but the champion, 34, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the intensity hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
Arthur barely secured the result with scoring tallies of 114-114, 115-113 and wider gap, but the two athletes were relentless and courageous, everything their inspiration Hatton represented.
