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UK light-heavyweight Buatsi earned a win yet disappointing debut to his career under new promoters with a points victory over Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output seemingly secured him a majority decision in a close 10-round fight at the boxing arena.

But Parker landed significant shots, landing some telling clean blows in a contest where the techniques failed to mesh, with constant grabbing disrupting the contest.

Two judges had it 96-94 in favor to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95 draw.

"It wasn't my greatest display but how do champions respond? They prevail," Buatsi stated in the arena as he was faced disapproval from the audience.

The British fighter bounced back after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to earn a 20th career victory.

Some ringside observers believed Parker, 31, should have been awarded the decision but the contender experienced the second loss of his 28-fight career.

The Champion Secures Win in Uneventful Match

His career development has stalled in recent times through management issues and extended periods of inactivity.

Earlier forecast as the next star of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to achieve expectations - possibly in what feels like a last chance - under new promotional backing.

He opened tentatively, with the two boxers ready to be aggressive in a cagey early stages.

The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at the lower weight class against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand in the contest, was competing in only his second bout at the higher weight class.

By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, creating difficulties for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to narrowly win the cleaner periods.

The crowd's patience decreased amid constant clinching, with the challenger slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during grappling.

The underdog finished the stronger, but multiple periods were hard to judge. Nevertheless, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.

The victor advances, but with the caliber of power puncher Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still appears challenging.

Hatton Memorial Fuels Local Rivalry Contest

In the co-main event, Arthur overcame Bradley Rea by divided decision in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester contest to capture the continental belt.

The arena became quiet for a extremely emotional tribute ahead of the contest as ten bells tolled in remembrance of Manchester's own Hatton, who died at age 46 in recently.

It was the premier televised match card in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the quiet transitioned to a chant of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".

The competition inside the ropes matched the sentiment. Arthur was knocked down by a significant blow squarely on the face in the initial stage, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.

But the red-colored shorts of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. Across the ring, Rea - in competitive blue - was injured quickly, heavy swelling forming under his orbital area as the pair traded hard punches.

Rea, twenty-seven, landed power punches but the champion, 34, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace hardly diminished over the full distance.

Arthur narrowly won the verdict with scoring tallies of 114-114, 115-113 and 115-112, but both fighters were persistent and full of heart, all the qualities their hero the legend represented.