UK light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet unimpressive start to life under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic medal winner's activity level seemingly secured him a judges' verdict in a tight 10-round fight at the boxing arena.
But Parker had his moments, delivering effective individual punches in a match where the approaches didn't complement each other, with excessive holding disrupting the action.
The officials scored it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the remaining official a even score.
"It wasn't my finest display but what defines champions? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was met by disapproval from the crowd.
The Londoner returned to winning ways after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a 20th pro success.
Some ringside observers thought the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the victory but the British boxer endured the second setback of his 28-match career.
The Champion Claims Triumph in Uneventful Encounter
His career development has stalled in recent times through promotional disputes and extended periods of inactivity.
Earlier forecast as the next star of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - possibly in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He started carefully, with neither fighter willing to be aggressive in a tentative opening few rounds.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at the lower weight class against John Ryder in two years ago after suffering a hand injury during the bout, was participating in his second bout at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, causing problems for the favorite, who worked behind a solid defense to barely take the cleaner rounds.
The crowd's patience wore thin amid constant clinching, with the challenger falling to the floor various instances during close exchanges.
Parker closed well, but several stanzas were hard to judge. Although, ex-champion Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for Parker, giving Buatsi just a single round.
The victor progresses, but with the caliber of power puncher Benavidez, and Russian champion Bivol leading the category, the path to championship success - based on this performance - still appears challenging.
Hatton Memorial Inspires Local Rivalry Battle
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur overcame Bradley Rea by divided decision in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester battle to win the European light heavyweight belt.
The venue grew hushed for a extremely emotional memorial ahead of the contest as ten bells sounded in memory of the city's native Hatton, who succumbed at age 46 in September.
It was the first major televised match card in the urban center since Hatton's passing. As the concluding sound disappeared, the stillness transitioned to a chant of "only one Hatton".
The action within the ring equaled the feeling. Arthur was floored by a left hook flush on the jaw in the early round, rising shakily to his footing on the count of eight.
But the traditional red shorts of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. From the other corner, Rea - in opposing blue - was marked up early, significant bruising appearing under his eye as the duo exchanged powerful shots.
Rea, 27, delivered effective strikes but the champion, 34, responded in kind with stinging uppercuts as the intensity hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the decision with scoring tallies of 114-114, narrow lead and 115-112, but each competitor were persistent and courageous, all the qualities their hero the legend stood for.
