British light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi earned a win yet underwhelming start to his career under recent management with a points victory over Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate seemingly secured him a majority decision in a competitive ten-round bout at the Co-op Live Arena.
But Parker had his moments, connecting with powerful single shots in a contest where the approaches never quite clicked, with constant grabbing spoiling the action.
The scoring judges judged it 96-94 for to the winner, with the final judge a even score.
"It wasn't my finest showing but what do champions do? They prevail," Buatsi commented in the ringside as he was met by boos from the audience.
The British fighter got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in February - to claim a 20th career victory.
Some ringside observers felt the challenger, thirty-one, merited the victory but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second defeat of his 28-match career.
Buatsi Secures Victory in Uneventful Affair
The fighter's advancement has stalled in recent times through promotional disputes and considerable time of lack of fights.
Once tipped as the future of UK boxing, he now stands trying to realize his potential - possibly in what seems like a last chance - under fresh management.
He started carefully, with neither fighter ready to take risks in a cagey early stages.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after breaking his hand during the bout, was participating in his second appearance at the higher weight class.
By the middle rounds, the underdog had made it competitive, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to edge the cleaner stanzas.
The crowd's patience diminished because of frequent holding, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during clinches.
Parker finished the stronger, but multiple periods were difficult to score. Although, previous titleholder the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it significantly in favor for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just one round.
The victor progresses, but with the caliber of hard hitter Benavidez, and Russian champion Bivol ruling the division, the road to world glory - judging by this showing - still seems difficult.
Ricky Hatton Memorial Motivates Local Rivalry Battle
In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Bradley Rea by close verdict in a excellent all-Manchester fight to secure the European light-heavyweight title.
The arena fell silent for a deeply poignant tribute before the fight as ten bells sounded in remembrance of local hero Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in recently.
It was the first major televised match card in the location since Hatton's passing. As the last bell faded, the silence transitioned to a roar of "there's just one Ricky Hatton".
The competition within the ring reflected the feeling. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a significant blow flush on the jaw in the initial stage, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.
But the red-colored shorts of Arthur soon came forward again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in rival City blue - was damaged soon, heavy swelling appearing under his orbital area as the duo exchanged hard punches.
Rea, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, thirty-four, responded in kind with powerful upward punches as the intensity hardly diminished over the full distance.
Arthur narrowly won the result with scoring tallies of draw, close margin and wider gap, but the two athletes were persistent and courageous, exactly what their inspiration the legend represented.
