British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet unimpressive start to his career under new promoters with a decision win over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level likely gained him a split decision in a close 10-round contest at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger had his moments, connecting with powerful clean blows in a contest where the styles never quite clicked, with frequent clinching spoiling the contest.
Two judges scored it 96-94 to the winner, with the remaining official a even score.
"It wasn't my finest showing but how do champions respond? They prevail," the victor commented in the ring as he was faced disapproval from the audience.
The British fighter bounced back after his maiden career setback - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Several boxing experts thought the challenger, thirty-one, deserved the victory but the contender suffered the second loss of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Claims Victory in Uneventful Encounter
The fighter's advancement has slowed in the past few years through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.
Previously predicted as the next star of British boxing, he now stands trying to achieve expectations - maybe in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He opened tentatively, with both competitors ready to be aggressive in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand mid-fight, was competing in only his second fight at light-heavyweight.
By the middle rounds, the underdog had made it competitive, creating difficulties for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to barely take the better rounds.
The crowd's patience decreased because of constant clinching, with Parker slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during close exchanges.
The underdog ended stronger, but several stanzas were difficult to score. However, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - providing analysis for the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor moves on, but with the presence of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Russian champion Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - judging by this showing - still seems difficult.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Fuels Manchester Derby Fight
In the secondary fight, Arthur defeated Rea by divided decision in a excellent all-Manchester battle to win the European light heavyweight belt.
The venue became quiet for a extremely emotional memorial ahead of the contest as ten bells sounded in memory of local hero Ricky Hatton, who died 46 years old in September.
It was the first major televised match card in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the final chime disappeared, the quiet transitioned to a shout of "only one Hatton".
The action within the ring reflected the emotion. The eventual winner was floored by a left hook directly to the chin in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his position on the referee's count.
But the traditional red shorts of Arthur soon came forward again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in competitive blue - was marked up soon, heavy swelling developing under his eye as the duo landed hard punches.
Rea, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but the champion, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with stinging uppercuts as the pace rarely dropped over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the result with scoring tallies of even score, 115-113 and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and brave, all the qualities their idol Hatton represented.
