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UK light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing beginning to life under recent management with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.

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

But the challenger found success, delivering effective single shots in a match where the styles didn't complement each other, with excessive holding spoiling the fight.

Two judges had it 96-94 for to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95.

"It wasn't my best display but what do champions do? They win," the victor stated in the arena as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.

The Londoner got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in February - to secure a twentieth professional win.

Some ringside observers believed the challenger, thirty-one, deserved the victory but the British boxer experienced the second defeat of his 28-match professional journey.

Buatsi Claims Triumph in Uneventful Match

Buatsi's progress has slowed in the past few years through contract problems and long spells of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the next star of British boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.

He started carefully, with neither fighter ready to be aggressive in a tentative early stages.

Parker, whose only previous defeat came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after breaking his hand mid-fight, was participating in his second bout at light-heavyweight.

By the fight's midpoint, the underdog had stayed in contention, making life awkward for Buatsi, who utilized a solid defense to narrowly win the more effective periods.

The spectators' acceptance decreased because of frequent holding, with the challenger falling to the floor several times during close exchanges.

Parker finished the stronger, but many rounds were difficult to score. Although, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - commentating on Dazn - had it significantly in favor for Parker, awarding Buatsi just only one stanza.

Buatsi moves on, but with the likes of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian champion Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still looks steep.

Hatton Homage Motivates All-Manchester Contest

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

The arena grew hushed for a profoundly moving tribute prior to the bout as ten bells tolled in memory of the city's native Hatton, who passed away 46 years old in last month.

It was the first major televised fight night in the city since Hatton's death. As the concluding sound disappeared, the quiet became a chant of "there's just one Hatton".

The fighting during the bout equaled the emotion. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a left hook directly to the face in the second round, standing uncertainly to his position on the referee's count.

But the Manchester United-red equipment of Arthur soon came forward again. Across the ring, Rea - in opposing blue - was damaged soon, significant bruising forming under his orbital area as the pair traded powerful shots.

The challenger, 27, landed power punches but the champion, 34, responded in kind with powerful upward punches as the intensity hardly diminished over twelve rounds.

The victor narrowly won the result with official scores of 114-114, narrow lead and 115-112, but each competitor were persistent and courageous, exactly what their inspiration Hatton embodied.