British light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi secured a victory yet disappointing start to his career under new promoters with a decision win over Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic medal winner's work rate seemingly secured him a majority decision in a close ten-round fight at the boxing arena.
But the challenger had his moments, connecting with powerful individual punches in a fight where the techniques failed to mesh, with excessive holding spoiling the action.
Two judges scored it 96-94 in favor to Buatsi, with the final judge a even score.
"It wasn't my finest showing but what do champions do? They succeed," the victor stated in the ringside as he was met by disapproval from the spectators.
The British fighter got back to winning after his first professional defeat - an thrilling contest with his previous opponent in February - to claim a 20th career victory.
Some ringside observers thought the challenger, 31, should have been awarded the decision but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second defeat of his 28-bout career.
The Champion Earns Triumph in Slow Encounter
Buatsi's progress has slowed in recent times through promotional disputes and extended periods of inactivity.
Once tipped as the next star of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - possibly in what seems like a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.
He opened tentatively, with both competitors prepared to take risks in a calculated early stages.
The challenger, whose only previous defeat came at super-middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after breaking his hand during the bout, was making just his second bout at light heavyweight.
By the middle rounds, the underdog had made it competitive, creating difficulties for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to narrowly win the cleaner rounds.
The spectators' acceptance diminished during constant clinching, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during clinches.
The underdog closed well, but multiple periods were challenging to assess. However, ex-champion Carl Frampton - providing analysis for Dazn - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just only one stanza.
Buatsi progresses, but with the presence of power puncher Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still appears challenging.
Hatton Memorial Motivates All-Manchester Fight
In the secondary fight, Lyndon Arthur defeated Bradley Rea by split-decision in a excellent all-Manchester fight to capture the European light heavyweight championship.
The arena fell silent for a extremely emotional tribute prior to the bout as a bell ceremony rang in honor of Manchester's own Hatton, who died 46 years old in recently.
It was the premier televised match card in the urban center since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the silence became a roar of "there's only one Hatton".
The action inside the ropes equaled the feeling. The eventual winner was sent to the canvas by a powerful punch squarely on the chin in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the eight count.
But the red-colored equipment of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, Rea - in competitive blue - was marked up quickly, heavy swelling developing under his face as the pair exchanged powerful shots.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but Arthur, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with powerful upward punches as the action hardly diminished over 12 rounds.
The victor edged the decision with judges scorecards of 114-114, narrow lead and clearer margin, but each competitor were relentless and courageous, exactly what their hero the legend stood for.
