UK light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive debut to his career under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a majority decision in a competitive 10-round contest at the boxing arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, landing some telling individual punches in a contest where the styles never quite clicked, with frequent clinching disrupting the action.
Two judges scored it 96-94 to the winner, with the remaining official a even score.
"It wasn't my finest performance but how do champions respond? They win," the victor commented in the arena as he was faced boos from the audience.
The Londoner returned to winning ways after his maiden career setback - an epic battle with his previous opponent in February - to secure a twentieth professional win.
Some ringside observers thought the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the win but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second defeat of his 28-fight career.
Buatsi Secures Win in Slow Encounter
Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent times through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.
Once tipped as the next star of UK boxing, he now is positioned trying to realize his potential - possibly in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He began cautiously, with both competitors willing to take risks in a cagey opening few rounds.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after damaging his hand mid-fight, was participating in his second appearance at light-heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, Parker had kept it close, making life awkward for the favorite, who worked behind a protective stance to narrowly win the more effective stanzas.
The crowd's patience decreased amid frequent holding, with Parker going down multiple occasions during grappling.
The underdog finished the stronger, but several stanzas were difficult to score. However, ex-champion Carl Frampton - commentating on Dazn - had it strongly leaning for Parker, awarding Buatsi just one round.
The victor progresses, but with the caliber of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Hatton Homage Inspires All-Manchester Contest
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur overcame Bradley Rea by split-decision in a outstanding local rivalry battle to capture the European light heavyweight title.
The stadium became quiet for a profoundly moving memorial ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony tolled in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who died aged 46 in last month.
It was the initial significant broadcast fight night in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the concluding sound disappeared, the stillness gave way to a shout of "only one Hatton".
The action within the ring matched the feeling. The eventual winner was floored by a powerful punch squarely on the face in the second round, rising shakily to his position on the eight count.
But the red-colored equipment of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. From the other corner, the opponent - in competitive blue - was injured quickly, significant bruising forming under his orbital area as the fighters exchanged hard punches.
The challenger, twenty-seven, landed power punches but the champion, thirty-four, responded in kind with stinging uppercuts as the intensity hardly diminished over the full distance.
Arthur barely secured the result with scoring tallies of draw, narrow lead and clearer margin, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, exactly what their hero the legend embodied.
