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UK light heavyweight Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing start to life under new promoters with a points victory over Parker in the Manchester arena.

The Olympic medal winner's work rate seemingly secured him a split decision in a tight ten-round contest at the Manchester venue.

But the challenger had his moments, connecting with powerful individual punches in a fight where the approaches didn't complement each other, with constant grabbing marring the fight.

Two judges judged it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the remaining official a even score.

"It wasn't my best showing but how do champions respond? They win," the victor said in the ringside as he was greeted with disapproval from the audience.

The Londoner got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to secure a twentieth professional win.

Several boxing experts believed the challenger, thirty-one, deserved the win but the contender experienced the second setback of his 28-match professional journey.

Buatsi Claims Win in Dull Match

Buatsi's progress has plateaued in recent years through promotional disputes and long spells of lack of fights.

Previously predicted as the rising talent of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under recent support.

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

Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand mid-fight, was participating in his second bout at the higher weight class.

By the middle rounds, Parker had made it competitive, causing problems for the favorite, who operated with a tight guard to edge the cleaner stanzas.

The crowd's patience diminished during constant clinching, with Parker slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during close exchanges.

Parker ended stronger, but many rounds were difficult to score. Although, former world champion Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just a single round.

The victor moves on, 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 looks steep.

Hatton Memorial Motivates Local Rivalry Battle

In the supporting bout, Arthur overcame Rea by divided decision in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester battle to win the continental belt.

The stadium grew hushed for a extremely emotional homage prior to the bout as a bell ceremony rang in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who succumbed at age 46 in last month.

It was the first major televised match card in the city since Hatton's death. As the final chime disappeared, the stillness gave way to a chant of "only one Ricky Hatton".

The fighting during the bout equaled the sentiment. The eventual winner was knocked down by a significant blow directly to the face in the second round, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the eight count.

But the Manchester United-red shorts of Arthur soon advanced again. On the opposite side, Rea - in competitive blue - was injured quickly, noticeable damage developing under his eye as the pair exchanged punishing blows.

Rea, 27, landed power punches but the champion, 34, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over twelve rounds.

Arthur narrowly won the result with scoring tallies of draw, narrow lead and wider gap, but the two athletes were relentless and brave, all the qualities their hero Hatton stood for.