🔗 Share this article

British light heavyweight Buatsi secured a victory yet underwhelming debut to his career under fresh promotional backing with a unanimous decision over Zach Parker in Manchester.

The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level likely gained him a judges' verdict in a competitive ten-round fight at the Manchester venue.

But Parker found success, delivering effective individual punches in a fight where the approaches didn't complement each other, with excessive holding spoiling the fight.

The scoring judges scored it 96-94 to the winner, with the third a 95-95 draw.

"It wasn't my finest display but how do champions respond? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the arena as he was faced disapproval from the crowd.

The British fighter bounced back after his maiden career setback - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in February - to claim a 20th career victory.

Various analysts believed the challenger, 31, should have been awarded the decision but the contender suffered the second loss of his 28-fight professional journey.

Buatsi Secures Win in Slow Affair

Buatsi's progress has plateaued in recent times through promotional disputes and long spells of inactivity.

Previously predicted as the next star of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - maybe in what seems like a ultimate opportunity - under new promotional backing.

He began cautiously, with both competitors willing to be aggressive in a calculated early stages.

Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after suffering a hand injury in the contest, was competing in only his second bout at light heavyweight.

By the middle rounds, the underdog had made it competitive, making life awkward for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to barely take the cleaner rounds.

The audience's tolerance decreased amid frequent holding, with Parker going down several times during close exchanges.

Parker closed well, but several stanzas were difficult to score. However, ex-champion Carl Frampton - providing analysis for the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, scoring for Buatsi just a single round.

The victor progresses, but with the caliber of power puncher Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - judging by this showing - still looks steep.

Hatton Tribute Inspires Manchester Derby Fight

In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Rea by split-decision in a outstanding Manchester vs Manchester contest to capture the European light-heavyweight belt.

The stadium fell silent for a profoundly moving tribute ahead of the contest as ten bells tolled in remembrance of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in recently.

It was the premier televised match card in the location since Hatton's death. As the last bell faded, the silence became a roar of "there's only one Hatton".

The action within the ring equaled the sentiment. The eventual winner was floored by a significant blow directly to the chin in the second round, standing uncertainly to his position on the eight count.

But the Manchester United-red attire of Arthur soon advanced again. On the opposite side, Rea - in rival City blue - was marked up early, significant bruising developing under his face as the fighters exchanged hard punches.

The challenger, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the pace hardly diminished over the full distance.

Arthur barely secured the result with scoring tallies of even score, 115-113 and clearer margin, but both fighters were persistent and brave, exactly what their inspiration Hatton stood for.