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British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet unimpressive start to life under recent management with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a tight 10-round fight at the Manchester venue.

But the challenger landed significant shots, delivering effective single shots in a contest where the approaches never quite clicked, with excessive holding spoiling the action.

Two judges judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the final judge a even score.

"It wasn't my best showing but what do champions do? They succeed," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.

The Londoner returned to winning ways after his maiden career setback - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in February - to claim a twentieth professional win.

Several boxing experts thought the challenger, 31, deserved the win but the Derbyshire fighter endured the second setback of his 28-bout professional journey.

The Champion Secures Triumph in Uneventful Affair

His career development has plateaued in recent times through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the future of British boxing, he now is positioned trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.

He opened tentatively, with neither fighter willing to overcommit in a cagey early stages.

The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at the lower weight class against John Ryder in two years ago after breaking his hand mid-fight, was competing in only his second bout at light-heavyweight.

By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for the favorite, who worked behind a protective stance to barely take the cleaner periods.

The spectators' acceptance diminished during constant clinching, with the challenger slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during clinches.

Parker finished the stronger, but many rounds were hard to judge. Although, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just one round.

Buatsi advances, but with the caliber of heavy hitter Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - on this evidence - still looks steep.

Ricky Hatton Homage Fuels Manchester Derby Battle

In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a terrific local rivalry contest to capture the European light heavyweight belt.

The stadium grew hushed for a extremely emotional memorial before the fight as a bell ceremony rang in memory of local hero Ricky Hatton, who died aged 46 in last month.

It was the premier televised boxing event in the location since Hatton's death. As the final chime faded, the stillness became a chant of "there's just one Hatton".

The competition within the ring reflected the feeling. The eventual winner was knocked down by a powerful punch squarely on the face in the initial stage, standing uncertainly to his feet on the referee's count.

But the Manchester United-red attire of Arthur soon advanced again. From the other corner, Rea - in competitive blue - was damaged early, noticeable damage appearing under his face as the duo landed hard punches.

The challenger, twenty-seven, landed power punches but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the pace hardly diminished over twelve rounds.

Arthur edged the decision with official scores of even score, close margin and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, everything their idol Hatton embodied.