British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing debut to his career under fresh promotional backing with a points victory over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic medal winner's work rate seemingly secured him a majority decision in a close ten-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger had his moments, delivering effective clean blows in a contest where the approaches failed to mesh, with frequent clinching marring the fight.
The scoring judges had it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95.
"It wasn't my finest performance but what defines champions? They succeed," Buatsi commented in the arena as he was greeted with disapproval from the audience.
The Londoner got back to winning after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in last winter - to earn a 20th career victory.
Several boxing experts believed Parker, thirty-one, deserved the victory but the British boxer experienced the second loss of his 28-fight professional journey.
Buatsi Claims Triumph in Dull Match
The fighter's advancement has slowed in recent years through management issues and long spells of lack of fights.
Once tipped as the rising talent of British boxing, he now stands trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.
He started carefully, with the two boxers willing to take risks in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at the lower weight class against John Ryder in two years ago after suffering a hand injury in the contest, was competing in only his second appearance at light-heavyweight.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a tight guard to edge the better stanzas.
The spectators' acceptance diminished because of regular grabbing, with the challenger slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during grappling.
Parker closed well, but many rounds were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with Dazn - had it significantly in favor for Parker, giving Buatsi just a single round.
The victor moves on, but with the likes of power puncher David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Hatton Memorial Fuels All-Manchester Battle
In the co-main event, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a outstanding all-Manchester contest to win the European light-heavyweight belt.
The stadium became quiet for a profoundly moving tribute ahead of the contest as 10 bells tolled in honor of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who died 46 years old in last month.
It was the first major televised boxing event in the city since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the silence gave way to a shout of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The competition during the bout equaled the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a left hook flush on the jaw in the second round, standing uncertainly to his feet on the referee's count.
But the red-colored attire of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. From the other corner, Rea - in rival City blue - was injured soon, significant bruising appearing under his eye as the duo traded punishing blows.
The challenger, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, 34, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over the full distance.
Arthur barely secured the verdict with official scores of 114-114, 115-113 and wider gap, but both fighters were determined and full of heart, everything their idol the legend stood for.
