British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet underwhelming start to life under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output likely gained him a majority decision in a tight 10-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger had his moments, connecting with powerful single shots in a fight where the styles never quite clicked, with excessive holding marring the action.
The scoring judges had it 96-94 to the winner, with the third a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my finest showing but what do champions do? They win," the victor said in the arena as he was faced boos from the spectators.
The British fighter bounced back after his initial pro loss - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to claim a 20th career victory.
Several boxing experts thought the challenger, 31, deserved the win but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second loss of his 28-bout career.
Buatsi Secures Win in Uneventful Match
The fighter's advancement has slowed in recent years through management issues and extended periods of inactivity.
Once tipped as the rising talent of UK boxing, he now is positioned trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He started carefully, with the two boxers willing to be aggressive in a calculated early stages.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against his former opponent in two years ago after suffering a hand injury in the contest, was participating in his second bout at the higher weight class.
By the halfway stage, Parker had made it competitive, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to edge the more effective periods.
The crowd's patience wore thin because of regular grabbing, with Parker slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during close exchanges.
The underdog ended stronger, but multiple periods were hard to judge. Nevertheless, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it strongly leaning for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.
Buatsi moves on, but with the caliber of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - based on this performance - still seems difficult.
Ricky Hatton Homage Inspires Local Rivalry Fight
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a excellent local rivalry battle to capture the European light-heavyweight belt.
The arena fell silent for a extremely emotional tribute before the fight as ten bells sounded in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who succumbed aged 46 in September.
It was the premier televised fight night in the urban center since the passing of Hatton. As the concluding sound faded, the stillness gave way to a roar of "there's only one Hatton".
The fighting inside the ropes matched the feeling. Arthur was floored by a significant blow squarely on the face in the early round, rising shakily to his position on the eight count.
But the red-colored equipment of Arthur soon came forward again. From the other corner, the opponent - in rival City blue - was damaged early, significant bruising developing under his eye as the duo traded powerful shots.
Rea, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, 34, matched the intensity with effective uppercuts as the intensity hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
Arthur barely secured the decision with judges scorecards of even score, close margin and wider gap, but each competitor were relentless and full of heart, exactly what their inspiration the legend embodied.
