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British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet disappointing debut to life under recent management with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a split decision in a tight ten-round fight at the Manchester venue.

But the challenger had his moments, delivering effective clean blows in a match where the styles failed to mesh, with excessive holding marring the contest.

The officials judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95.

"It wasn't my finest display but how do champions respond? They prevail," the victor said in the ring as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.

The British fighter returned to winning ways after his initial pro loss - an epic battle with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a 20th career victory.

Several boxing experts believed the challenger, 31, merited the win but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second defeat of his 28-bout professional journey.

The Champion Earns Victory in Slow Affair

His career development has slowed in recent times through management issues and long spells of inactivity.

Earlier forecast as the next star of British boxing, he now stands trying to fulfil that early promise - maybe in what feels like a last chance - under fresh management.

He started carefully, with neither fighter willing to take risks in a cagey initial rounds.

The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand in the contest, was participating in his second appearance at the higher weight class.

By the halfway stage, the underdog had kept it close, making life awkward for Buatsi, who operated with a protective stance to barely take the better rounds.

The audience's tolerance wore thin because of frequent holding, with the challenger slipping to the canvas several times during close exchanges.

The underdog closed well, but several stanzas were difficult to score. Although, former world champion the boxing analyst - providing analysis for the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just a single round.

The victor progresses, but with the likes of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the road to world glory - based on this performance - still seems difficult.

Hatton Homage Motivates Local Rivalry Battle

In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur defeated Rea by split-decision in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester contest to secure the European light heavyweight belt.

The arena became quiet for a deeply poignant memorial prior to the bout as a bell ceremony tolled in honor of local hero Ricky Hatton, who succumbed at age 46 in September.

It was the premier televised fight night in the urban center since Hatton's passing. As the last bell faded, the silence transitioned to a roar of "only one Hatton".

The fighting within the ring matched the emotion. Arthur was knocked down by a significant blow squarely on the chin in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his position on the referee's count.

But the traditional red equipment of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. From the other corner, the opponent - in rival City blue - was marked up quickly, noticeable damage developing under his orbital area as the duo exchanged punishing blows.

The challenger, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, 34, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace hardly diminished over twelve rounds.

Arthur barely secured the verdict with scoring tallies of 114-114, narrow lead and clearer margin, but the two athletes were persistent and brave, exactly what their idol the legend represented.