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UK light heavyweight Buatsi earned a win yet unimpressive debut to his career under fresh promotional backing with a points victory over Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate likely gained him a judges' verdict in a tight 10-round fight at the Co-op Live Arena.

But the challenger had his moments, delivering effective individual punches in a contest where the approaches failed to mesh, with constant grabbing marring the action.

The scoring judges scored it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the final judge a 95-95.

"It wasn't my best showing but what do champions do? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the arena as he was met by disapproval from the audience.

The British fighter bounced back after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in last winter - to earn a 20th pro success.

Various analysts thought the challenger, thirty-one, deserved the decision but the Derbyshire fighter suffered the second defeat of his 28-fight career.

Buatsi Earns Victory in Uneventful Encounter

Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent years through promotional disputes and long spells of lack of fights.

Previously predicted as the rising talent of British boxing, he now stands trying to realize his potential - possibly in what seems like a last chance - under new promotional backing.

He opened tentatively, with neither fighter prepared to take risks in a calculated opening few rounds.

The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury mid-fight, was participating in his second fight at the higher weight class.

By the middle rounds, the underdog had made it competitive, causing problems for the favorite, who operated with a tight guard to narrowly win the better rounds.

The spectators' acceptance wore thin amid regular grabbing, with Parker going down multiple occasions during grappling.

The underdog closed well, but several stanzas were hard to judge. However, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - working with Dazn - had it significantly in favor for Parker, awarding Buatsi just a single round.

The victor progresses, but with the presence of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Russian champion Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - judging by this showing - still appears challenging.

Ricky Hatton Memorial Fuels Manchester Derby Battle

In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur defeated Rea by divided decision in a excellent all-Manchester contest to secure the European light-heavyweight title.

The stadium became quiet for a extremely emotional tribute prior to the bout as a bell ceremony rang in honor of Manchester's own Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in September.

It was the premier televised match card in the urban center since the passing of Hatton. As the concluding sound ended, the silence gave way to a chant of "only one Ricky Hatton".

The action within the ring reflected the emotion. The eventual winner was knocked down by a powerful punch directly to the face in the early round, standing uncertainly to his feet on the count of eight.

But the red-colored attire of the fighter soon advanced again. Across the ring, the opponent - in rival City blue - was injured soon, significant bruising forming under his orbital area as the pair exchanged powerful shots.

Rea, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, responded in kind with effective uppercuts as the action hardly diminished over the full distance.

Arthur narrowly won the verdict with scoring tallies of even score, close margin and 115-112, but both fighters were determined and full of heart, all the qualities their idol Hatton stood for.