UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive debut to life under recent management with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a tight 10-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But Parker had his moments, landing some telling clean blows in a match where the approaches didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching spoiling the contest.
The scoring judges scored it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best display but what do champions do? They prevail," the victor said in the ring as he was greeted with negative reactions from the audience.
The British fighter bounced back after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in last winter - to secure a 20th career victory.
Various analysts thought the challenger, thirty-one, deserved the victory but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second setback of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Claims Triumph in Uneventful Match
Buatsi's progress has stalled in recent times through contract problems and long spells of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the next star of the British fight scene, he now stands trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what appears to be a ultimate opportunity - under recent support.
He began cautiously, with both competitors willing to be aggressive in a tentative early stages.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in two years ago after damaging his hand in the contest, was making just his second bout at the higher weight class.
By the halfway stage, Parker had kept it close, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who worked behind a solid defense to barely take the cleaner stanzas.
The spectators' acceptance diminished amid frequent holding, with the challenger going down several times during clinches.
Parker ended stronger, but multiple periods were challenging to assess. However, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, giving Buatsi just only one stanza.
Buatsi moves on, but with the caliber of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Fuels Manchester Derby Fight
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur defeated Bradley Rea by divided decision in a excellent local rivalry battle to secure the European light heavyweight championship.
The stadium grew hushed for a deeply poignant homage before the fight as a bell ceremony rang in honor of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who died at age 46 in September.
It was the initial significant broadcast match card in the city since Hatton's passing. As the last bell disappeared, the stillness gave way to a chant of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".
The action during the bout reflected the emotion. The eventual winner was floored by a powerful punch squarely on the face in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the eight count.
But the Manchester United-red attire of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in opposing blue - was injured soon, significant bruising appearing under his orbital area as the fighters exchanged powerful shots.
The challenger, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, 34, responded in kind with powerful upward punches as the intensity seldom decreased over the full distance.
The victor narrowly won the decision with judges scorecards of draw, narrow lead and clearer margin, but both fighters were relentless and courageous, everything their inspiration Hatton represented.
