UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive debut to his career under fresh promotional backing with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate appeared to earn him a majority decision in a close 10-round contest at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger found success, delivering effective individual punches in a fight where the techniques never quite clicked, with constant grabbing marring the contest.
Two judges scored it 96-94 to the winner, with the third a even score.
"It wasn't my best display but how do champions respond? They prevail," the victor said in the arena as he was faced boos from the crowd.
The Londoner bounced back after his first professional defeat - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in last winter - to claim a twentieth professional win.
Various analysts felt the challenger, thirty-one, merited the victory but the Derbyshire fighter endured the second defeat of his 28-fight career.
Buatsi Earns Win in Slow Match
Buatsi's progress has stalled in the past few years through management issues and considerable time of inactivity.
Once tipped as the rising talent of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what seems like a ultimate opportunity - under new promotional backing.
He started carefully, with the two boxers prepared to take risks in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose only previous defeat came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after suffering a hand injury in the contest, was competing in only his second appearance at the higher weight class.
By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for Buatsi, who utilized a solid defense to narrowly win the better rounds.
The spectators' acceptance diminished during frequent holding, with the challenger slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during grappling.
Parker finished the stronger, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. Although, ex-champion the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.
The victor progresses, but with the likes of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - based on this performance - still seems difficult.
Hatton Homage Inspires Local Rivalry Fight
In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Rea by close verdict in a excellent local rivalry battle to capture the European light heavyweight title.
The venue grew hushed for a profoundly moving memorial before the fight as 10 bells tolled in memory of the city's native Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in last month.
It was the premier televised match card in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the silence gave way to a shout of "only one Ricky Hatton".
The action within the ring reflected the emotion. Arthur was floored by a powerful punch flush on the jaw in the early round, standing uncertainly to his position on the count of eight.
But the traditional red shorts of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in competitive blue - was marked up early, heavy swelling forming under his face as the pair traded powerful shots.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the pace seldom decreased over twelve rounds.
The victor edged the result with scoring tallies of even score, narrow lead and 115-112, but each competitor were determined and full of heart, everything their hero Hatton represented.
