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British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing debut to life under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Parker in the Manchester arena.

The Olympic medal winner's work rate appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a close ten-round contest at the Manchester venue.

But Parker had his moments, landing some telling individual punches in a fight where the styles never quite clicked, with excessive holding spoiling the contest.

The officials had it 96-94 to Buatsi, with the remaining official a 95-95.

"It wasn't my greatest performance but what do champions do? They succeed," the victor said in the ring as he was met by boos from the spectators.

The Londoner got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a 20th career victory.

Various analysts felt the challenger, 31, deserved the decision but the Derbyshire fighter suffered the second loss of his 28-match professional journey.

Buatsi Secures Triumph in Uneventful Encounter

Buatsi's progress has stalled in the past few years through management issues and long spells of lack of fights.

Once tipped as the future of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - possibly in what appears to be a ultimate opportunity - under fresh management.

He started carefully, with the two boxers ready to take risks in a tentative initial rounds.

Parker, whose single earlier setback came at the lower weight class against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was making just his second appearance at the higher weight class.

By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had kept it close, creating difficulties for the favorite, who worked behind a protective stance to narrowly win the more effective rounds.

The spectators' acceptance decreased amid regular grabbing, with the challenger slipping to the canvas several times during clinches.

The underdog finished the stronger, but many rounds were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - providing analysis for the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just a single round.

Buatsi progresses, but with the caliber of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still seems difficult.

Hatton Tribute Fuels All-Manchester Fight

In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur defeated Rea by divided decision in a outstanding local rivalry battle to secure the European light heavyweight title.

The venue became quiet for a extremely emotional tribute ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony rang in honor of local hero Ricky Hatton, who succumbed 46 years old in recently.

It was the premier televised match card in the city since Hatton's passing. As the final chime disappeared, the silence became a shout of "there's just one Hatton".

The fighting within the ring matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a significant blow squarely on the chin in the second round, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the referee's count.

But the Manchester United-red attire of the fighter soon came forward again. From the other corner, the opponent - in opposing blue - was injured soon, noticeable damage forming under his eye as the pair traded powerful shots.

The challenger, 27, landed power punches but Arthur, thirty-four, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the action hardly diminished over 12 rounds.

The victor narrowly won the verdict with official scores of draw, narrow lead and wider gap, but both fighters were persistent and brave, all the qualities their inspiration the legend stood for.