British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet unimpressive beginning to life under new promoters with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output seemingly secured him a split decision in a close 10-round bout at the boxing arena.
But the challenger landed significant shots, delivering effective clean blows in a match where the styles never quite clicked, with frequent clinching marring the contest.
The scoring judges judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95.
"It wasn't my finest performance but how do champions respond? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was greeted with negative reactions from the crowd.
The British fighter returned to winning ways after his initial pro loss - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a 20th pro success.
Some ringside observers felt the challenger, thirty-one, should have been awarded the win but the Derbyshire fighter endured the second defeat of his 28-fight career.
The Champion Secures Victory in Uneventful Match
Buatsi's progress has stalled in the past few years through contract problems and considerable time of inactivity.
Previously predicted as the next star of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to achieve expectations - perhaps in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He opened tentatively, with both competitors willing to overcommit in a tentative early stages.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after breaking his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second appearance at the higher weight class.
By the middle rounds, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for Buatsi, who worked behind a tight guard to edge the better stanzas.
The crowd's patience decreased amid frequent holding, with the challenger falling to the floor various instances during close exchanges.
Parker finished the stronger, but several stanzas were difficult to score. Nevertheless, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - commentating on the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just one round.
Buatsi progresses, but with the likes of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still looks steep.
Hatton Memorial Fuels Local Rivalry Fight
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur beat Rea by divided decision in a excellent all-Manchester battle to win the continental championship.
The arena became quiet for a deeply poignant memorial before the fight as a bell ceremony tolled in remembrance of the city's native Hatton, who died at age 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the urban center since Hatton's passing. As the concluding sound ended, the silence became a roar of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".
The competition during the bout matched the feeling. Arthur was knocked down by a powerful punch directly to the chin in the initial stage, rising shakily to his position on the referee's count.
But the red-colored equipment of the fighter soon came forward again. Across the ring, the opponent - in rival City blue - was marked up quickly, noticeable damage appearing under his orbital area as the fighters landed punishing blows.
Rea, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with powerful upward punches as the intensity hardly diminished over 12 rounds.
Arthur edged the result with official scores of even score, narrow lead and clearer margin, but each competitor were persistent and brave, exactly what their inspiration the legend embodied.
