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British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet underwhelming start to his career under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic medal winner's punch output seemingly secured him a majority decision in a tight ten-round contest at the Manchester venue.

But the challenger had his moments, landing some telling individual punches in a fight where the approaches failed to mesh, with constant grabbing disrupting the action.

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

"It wasn't my finest display but how do champions respond? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was met by boos from the crowd.

The British fighter got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with Callum Smith in February - to secure a twentieth professional win.

Various analysts thought Parker, thirty-one, merited the win but the British boxer endured the second setback of his 28-fight career.

Buatsi Secures Triumph in Slow Match

The fighter's advancement has plateaued in the past few years through management issues and long spells of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the next star of British boxing, he now stands trying to achieve expectations - possibly in what seems like a last chance - under recent support.

He began cautiously, with neither fighter willing to be aggressive in a tentative opening few rounds.

The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after breaking his hand mid-fight, was competing in only his second fight at the higher weight class.

By the middle rounds, the underdog had kept it close, making life awkward for the favorite, who operated with a protective stance to barely take the better periods.

The spectators' acceptance wore thin during regular grabbing, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during close exchanges.

The underdog ended stronger, but many rounds were challenging to assess. However, ex-champion the boxing analyst - commentating on Dazn - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just one round.

The victor moves on, but with the caliber of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian star Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - on this evidence - still seems difficult.

Hatton Homage Motivates All-Manchester Contest

In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur beat Bradley Rea by divided decision in a outstanding all-Manchester contest to secure the European light heavyweight championship.

The arena fell silent for a deeply poignant memorial before the fight as 10 bells tolled in memory of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in September.

It was the initial significant broadcast boxing event in the city since Hatton's death. As the last bell faded, the quiet transitioned to a roar of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".

The competition within the ring matched the sentiment. The eventual winner was knocked down by a left hook squarely on the jaw in the early round, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.

But the red-colored equipment of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, Rea - in rival City blue - was damaged soon, noticeable damage appearing under his eye as the pair exchanged hard punches.

Rea, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but Arthur, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace hardly diminished over the full distance.

The victor narrowly won the verdict with judges scorecards of even score, close margin and wider gap, but both fighters were persistent and courageous, exactly what their hero Hatton represented.