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UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet unimpressive beginning to his career under new promoters with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a split decision in a tight 10-round contest at the boxing arena.

But the challenger had his moments, landing some telling individual punches in a contest where the styles never quite clicked, with frequent clinching spoiling the fight.

The scoring judges judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95 draw.

"It wasn't my best performance but what do champions do? They succeed," Buatsi commented in the arena as he was faced negative reactions from the crowd.

The Londoner returned to winning ways after his initial pro loss - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to secure a twentieth professional win.

Some ringside observers felt the challenger, thirty-one, merited the decision but the British boxer suffered the second setback of his 28-match career.

The Champion Claims Win in Uneventful Match

Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent years through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.

Once tipped as the future of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - perhaps in what seems like a ultimate opportunity - under recent support.

He began cautiously, with neither fighter willing to be aggressive in a calculated early stages.

The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at the lower weight class against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand during the bout, was competing in only his second fight at the higher weight class.

By the middle rounds, Parker had stayed in contention, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who worked behind a protective stance to narrowly win the more effective rounds.

The crowd's patience wore thin because of constant clinching, with the challenger slipping to the canvas multiple occasions during grappling.

The underdog closed well, but many rounds were difficult to score. Nevertheless, ex-champion Carl Frampton - commentating on Dazn - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just one round.

Buatsi moves on, but with the likes of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - on this evidence - still seems difficult.

Hatton Homage Inspires Manchester Derby Fight

In the supporting bout, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by split-decision in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester fight to capture the European light heavyweight belt.

The venue fell silent for a profoundly moving memorial ahead of the contest as ten bells tolled in remembrance of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who died at age 46 in last month.

It was the first major televised boxing event in the urban center since Hatton's passing. As the final chime faded, the silence transitioned to a roar of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".

The action during the bout reflected the sentiment. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas 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 came forward again. From the other corner, Rea - in competitive blue - was damaged quickly, heavy swelling appearing under his face as the pair traded powerful shots.

The challenger, 27, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with powerful upward punches as the intensity seldom decreased over the full distance.

The victor edged the result with scoring tallies of even score, close margin and clearer margin, but each competitor were relentless and courageous, all the qualities their inspiration Hatton represented.