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British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet unimpressive debut to his career under recent management with a unanimous decision over Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a judges' verdict in a competitive 10-round fight at the Co-op Live Arena.

But the challenger landed significant shots, delivering effective clean blows in a match where the techniques never quite clicked, with constant grabbing disrupting the action.

The scoring judges scored it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the third a even score.

"It wasn't my greatest showing but how do champions respond? They win," the victor said in the ringside as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.

The British fighter got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with Callum Smith in February - to claim a 20th career victory.

Several boxing experts thought the challenger, 31, merited the decision but the contender suffered the second loss of his 28-fight career.

Buatsi Secures Triumph in Dull Match

The fighter's advancement has slowed in recent years through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.

Earlier forecast as the future of British boxing, he now stands trying to realize his potential - maybe in what feels like a last chance - under recent support.

He started carefully, with the two boxers ready to be aggressive in a calculated early stages.

The challenger, whose only previous defeat came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after damaging his hand mid-fight, was making just his second bout at the higher weight class.

By the halfway stage, Parker had stayed in contention, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who utilized a tight guard to edge the cleaner rounds.

The crowd's patience decreased because of regular grabbing, with Parker slipping to the canvas several times during close exchanges.

Parker closed well, but multiple periods were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - commentating on the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.

Buatsi moves on, but with the caliber of power puncher David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - on this evidence - still looks steep.

Hatton Memorial Fuels All-Manchester Battle

In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Rea by divided decision in a terrific local rivalry contest to win the European light-heavyweight title.

The venue fell silent for a profoundly moving tribute before the fight as 10 bells rang in memory of Manchester's own Hatton, who died aged 46 in recently.

It was the initial significant broadcast boxing event in the city since Hatton's passing. As the final chime disappeared, the silence gave way to a chant of "only one Ricky Hatton".

The competition within the ring reflected the emotion. Arthur was floored by a left hook directly to the jaw in the early round, standing uncertainly to his feet on the count of eight.

But the red-colored equipment of Arthur soon came forward again. On the opposite side, Rea - in opposing blue - was marked up early, noticeable damage forming under his orbital area as the pair exchanged punishing blows.

Rea, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but Arthur, 34, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the action hardly diminished over twelve rounds.

Arthur edged the decision with judges scorecards of 114-114, 115-113 and 115-112, but both fighters were persistent and courageous, everything their inspiration the legend represented.