UK light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi made a winning yet underwhelming beginning to life under new promoters with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's activity level appeared to earn him a split decision in a close ten-round bout at the boxing arena.
But the challenger had his moments, connecting with powerful single shots in a match where the techniques didn't complement each other, with frequent clinching disrupting the fight.
Two judges scored it 96-94 in favor to the winner, with the third a 95-95.
"It wasn't my finest display but what do champions do? They succeed," the victor said in the ringside as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.
The British fighter returned to winning ways after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with Callum Smith in last winter - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Several boxing experts believed Parker, 31, deserved the decision but the British boxer experienced the second setback of his 28-match professional journey.
The Champion Claims Win in Dull Affair
Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent years through management issues and considerable time of inactivity.
Previously predicted as the rising talent of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He started carefully, with the two boxers willing to be aggressive in a calculated initial rounds.
The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after suffering a hand injury in the contest, was making just his second fight at light-heavyweight.
By the middle rounds, Parker had stayed in contention, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to barely take the more effective stanzas.
The spectators' acceptance diminished amid frequent holding, with the challenger going down various instances during close exchanges.
Parker finished the stronger, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. However, ex-champion Carl Frampton - commentating on the broadcast network - had it particularly wide for Parker, awarding Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor moves on, but with the caliber of heavy hitter Benavidez, and Russian champion Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the path to championship success - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Tribute Inspires Local Rivalry Contest
In the co-main event, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by divided decision in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester contest to secure the continental championship.
The stadium became quiet for a profoundly moving homage ahead of the contest as ten bells tolled in remembrance of the city's native Hatton, who succumbed at age 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised fight night in the city since Hatton's passing. As the last bell disappeared, the silence gave way to a shout of "there's only one Hatton".
The fighting inside the ropes equaled the emotion. The eventual winner was floored by a left hook flush on the face in the early round, getting up unsteadily to his position on the eight count.
But the Manchester United-red equipment of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. Across the ring, the opponent - in opposing blue - was marked up quickly, heavy swelling developing under his eye as the fighters exchanged powerful shots.
The challenger, twenty-seven, landed power punches but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with stinging uppercuts as the pace hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
The victor barely secured the result with scoring tallies of 114-114, close margin and 115-112, but both fighters were persistent and courageous, everything their inspiration the legend represented.
