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British light heavyweight Buatsi secured a victory yet underwhelming start to his career under recent management with a points victory over Parker in the Manchester arena.

The Olympic medal winner's punch output appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a competitive 10-round fight at the boxing arena.

But Parker landed significant shots, delivering effective clean blows in a contest where the styles failed to mesh, with frequent clinching disrupting the action.

The officials judged it 96-94 to the winner, with the third a 95-95 draw.

"It wasn't my finest performance but what defines champions? They win," Buatsi stated in the ring as he was faced negative reactions from the spectators.

The British fighter got back to winning after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to claim a 20th career victory.

Several boxing experts thought the challenger, 31, should have been awarded the win but the contender experienced the second loss of his 28-match professional journey.

The Champion Claims Triumph in Slow Affair

His career development has slowed in recent years through promotional disputes and extended periods of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the rising talent of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.

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

The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after breaking his hand during the bout, was making just his second fight at the higher weight class.

By the halfway stage, the underdog had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a tight guard to edge the more effective stanzas.

The audience's tolerance wore thin because of frequent holding, with Parker falling to the floor various instances during clinches.

The underdog finished the stronger, but many rounds were difficult to score. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.

Buatsi moves on, but with the caliber of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - based on this performance - still appears challenging.

Hatton Tribute Inspires Local Rivalry Fight

In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur defeated Bradley Rea by divided decision in a excellent local rivalry battle to win the continental championship.

The arena grew hushed for a deeply poignant homage prior to the bout as ten bells sounded in memory of local hero Ricky Hatton, who died aged 46 in recently.

It was the first major televised match card in the city since Hatton's death. As the final chime faded, the silence became a chant of "only one Hatton".

The competition inside the ropes matched the feeling. Arthur was sent to the canvas by a powerful punch flush on the face in the second round, getting up unsteadily to his footing on the referee's count.

But the traditional red equipment of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, Rea - in rival City blue - was injured soon, noticeable damage forming under his eye as the duo exchanged hard punches.

The challenger, twenty-seven, landed power punches but Arthur, 34, fought fire with fire with powerful upward punches as the action hardly diminished over twelve rounds.

Arthur barely secured the result with scoring tallies of 114-114, narrow lead and wider gap, but each competitor were relentless and full of heart, exactly what their inspiration the legend represented.