British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing debut to life under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level appeared to earn him a split decision in a competitive 10-round contest at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger had his moments, connecting with powerful clean blows in a fight where the approaches failed to mesh, with frequent clinching marring the fight.
The officials had it 96-94 to the winner, with the final judge a even score.
"It wasn't my greatest showing but what defines champions? They prevail," the victor stated in the ring as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.
The Londoner returned to winning ways after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with his previous opponent in February - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Several boxing experts thought Parker, 31, deserved the win but the contender experienced the second defeat of his 28-match career.
The Champion Secures Triumph in Uneventful Affair
Buatsi's progress has stalled in recent times through contract problems and long spells of inactivity.
Once tipped as the future of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - possibly in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He started carefully, with the two boxers ready to overcommit in a tentative initial rounds.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after damaging his hand in the contest, was competing in only his second bout at light heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, Parker had made it competitive, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who worked behind a solid defense to barely take the cleaner stanzas.
The crowd's patience diminished because of regular grabbing, with the challenger falling to the floor several times during close exchanges.
Parker finished the stronger, but several stanzas were hard to judge. Although, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it particularly wide for Parker, awarding Buatsi just one round.
Buatsi progresses, but with the presence of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still seems difficult.
Hatton Tribute Motivates Local Rivalry Fight
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur overcame Rea by split-decision in a excellent local rivalry fight to win the European light-heavyweight championship.
The stadium became quiet for a profoundly moving tribute ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony rang in honor of local hero Ricky Hatton, who passed away 46 years old in September.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the location since Hatton's death. As the concluding sound faded, the silence transitioned to a shout of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The competition within the ring equaled the feeling. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a powerful punch flush on the chin in the early round, rising shakily to his feet on the referee's count.
But the red-colored attire of Arthur soon came forward again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in competitive blue - was marked up early, noticeable damage developing under his face as the duo landed hard punches.
Rea, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, responded in kind with powerful upward punches as the pace hardly diminished over the full distance.
The victor barely secured the decision with scoring tallies of even score, 115-113 and wider gap, but each competitor were determined and full of heart, everything their inspiration the legend embodied.
