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British light heavyweight Buatsi earned a win yet disappointing beginning to life under new promoters with a decision win over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate appeared to earn him a majority decision in a competitive ten-round fight at the boxing arena.

But Parker found success, landing some telling individual punches in a match where the techniques never quite clicked, with frequent clinching spoiling the action.

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

"It wasn't my finest showing but what do champions do? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the arena as he was greeted with negative reactions from the spectators.

The British fighter got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a 20th career victory.

Several boxing experts believed Parker, 31, merited the win but the British boxer experienced the second defeat of his 28-fight professional journey.

The Champion Claims Victory in Slow Match

Buatsi's progress has plateaued in the past few years through management issues and long spells of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the future of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.

He started carefully, with both competitors ready to take risks in a calculated early stages.

The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at super middleweight against his former opponent in two years ago after damaging his hand in the contest, was participating in his second appearance at the higher weight class.

By the middle rounds, Parker had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a protective stance to edge the better rounds.

The audience's tolerance decreased amid frequent holding, with Parker slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during close exchanges.

The underdog closed well, but many rounds were challenging to assess. Although, ex-champion the boxing analyst - commentating on the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just a single round.

The victor advances, but with the likes of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still looks steep.

Ricky Hatton Tribute Motivates All-Manchester Fight

In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Rea by close verdict in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester fight to capture the European light heavyweight championship.

The arena grew hushed for a profoundly moving homage prior to the bout as a bell ceremony sounded in memory of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who succumbed 46 years old in recently.

It was the premier televised fight night in the city since Hatton's passing. As the last bell ended, the silence became a shout of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".

The competition inside the ropes matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was knocked down by a left hook squarely on the face in the early round, standing uncertainly to his position on the count of eight.

But the traditional red attire of Arthur soon came forward again. On the opposite side, Rea - in competitive blue - was injured soon, significant bruising developing under his orbital area as the fighters landed hard punches.

The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the action seldom decreased over 12 rounds.

Arthur barely secured the decision with judges scorecards of 114-114, close margin and clearer margin, but the two athletes were relentless and courageous, exactly what their idol Hatton stood for.