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British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet disappointing start to life under fresh promotional backing with a decision win over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output likely gained him a split decision in a tight 10-round contest at the boxing arena.

But Parker found success, delivering effective clean blows in a contest where the styles didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching disrupting the action.

The officials scored it 96-94 to the winner, with the third a 95-95.

"It wasn't my best performance but what do champions do? They win," the victor stated in the ring as he was greeted with negative reactions from the crowd.

The British fighter got back to winning after his initial pro loss - an epic battle with Callum Smith in last winter - to claim a 20th pro success.

Several boxing experts felt the challenger, 31, deserved the decision but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second setback of his 28-fight career.

Buatsi Secures Victory in Slow Encounter

Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent years through contract problems and long spells of inactivity.

Once tipped as the future of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what feels like a last chance - under new promotional backing.

He began cautiously, with both competitors willing to overcommit in a calculated early stages.

The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at the lower weight class against his former opponent in 2022 after damaging his hand mid-fight, was competing in only his second appearance at the higher weight class.

By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for the favorite, who worked behind a protective stance to narrowly win the better rounds.

The spectators' acceptance wore thin during constant clinching, with the challenger going down various instances during clinches.

The underdog closed well, but several stanzas were hard to judge. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with Dazn - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, giving Buatsi just one round.

Buatsi moves on, but with the likes of heavy hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - on this evidence - still looks steep.

Hatton Tribute Motivates Manchester Derby Fight

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

The venue grew hushed for a profoundly moving tribute ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony sounded in remembrance of local hero Ricky Hatton, who died at age 46 in September.

It was the initial significant broadcast boxing event in the urban center since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the quiet became a chant of "there's just one Hatton".

The competition inside the ropes matched the sentiment. Arthur was floored by a powerful punch flush on the chin in the second round, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the count of eight.

But the red-colored attire of Arthur soon came forward again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in competitive blue - was damaged soon, noticeable damage developing under his eye as the fighters landed punishing blows.

The challenger, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the pace hardly diminished over the full distance.

Arthur narrowly won the verdict with official scores of 114-114, close margin and clearer margin, but the two athletes were determined and full of heart, everything their idol Hatton stood for.