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British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet underwhelming beginning to his career under new promoters with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic medal winner's work rate seemingly secured him a judges' verdict in a tight 10-round bout at the boxing arena.

But the challenger found success, connecting with powerful single shots in a contest where the approaches didn't complement each other, with excessive holding disrupting the contest.

The officials judged it 96-94 to Buatsi, with the third a even score.

"It wasn't my finest performance but how do champions respond? They succeed," the victor commented in the ringside as he was greeted with negative reactions from the audience.

The Londoner bounced back after his maiden career setback - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a 20th pro success.

Several boxing experts thought Parker, thirty-one, merited the decision but the contender experienced the second loss of his 28-fight career.

Buatsi Earns Win in Uneventful Encounter

His career development has slowed in recent times through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the future of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.

He opened tentatively, with neither fighter prepared to overcommit in a cagey opening few rounds.

Parker, whose single earlier setback came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after breaking his hand in the contest, was competing in only his second bout at the higher weight class.

By the halfway stage, the underdog had stayed in contention, making life awkward for Buatsi, who operated with a tight guard to edge the cleaner stanzas.

The spectators' acceptance diminished amid frequent holding, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during grappling.

Parker closed well, but several stanzas were difficult to score. Nevertheless, ex-champion Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for Parker, awarding Buatsi just one round.

The victor advances, but with the likes of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - on this evidence - still seems difficult.

Ricky Hatton Homage Fuels Manchester Derby Battle

In the supporting bout, Arthur beat Rea by split-decision in a terrific all-Manchester contest to win the European light heavyweight title.

The arena grew hushed for a deeply poignant homage ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony tolled in remembrance of local hero Ricky Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in recently.

It was the initial significant broadcast fight night in the urban center since Hatton's death. As the last bell ended, the silence became a chant of "there's just one Hatton".

The action inside the ropes equaled the emotion. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a powerful punch directly to the jaw in the second round, getting up unsteadily to his footing on the count of eight.

But the red-colored shorts of the fighter soon came forward again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in competitive blue - was marked up early, significant bruising forming under his face as the pair traded punishing blows.

Rea, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, fought fire with fire with powerful upward punches as the pace rarely dropped over 12 rounds.

The victor barely secured the result with scoring tallies of draw, close margin and wider gap, but each competitor were relentless and full of heart, exactly what their inspiration the legend stood for.