Willy Hutchinson defeated Joshua Buatsi by unanimous decision to win the vacant WBC light heavyweight title, building an early lead and surviving a late scare in their rematch at Manchester’s AO Arena.

The judges scored it 117-112, 115-113 and 115-113 for Hutchinson (21-2, 14 KOs), whose switching between orthodox and southpaw gave Buatsi problems throughout the DAZN main event promoted by Queensberry. Buatsi (20-2, 13 KOs) finished strongly but left himself too much ground to recover.

Hutchinson had the better of the opening six rounds, changing stance and landing enough to keep Buatsi chasing the fight. The Scottish fighter continued to hold a narrow edge through the tenth, putting the pressure on Buatsi to produce something decisive over the final two rounds.

Buatsi finally had Hutchinson in trouble during the last minute of the eleventh. It was the opening he needed, but Hutchinson survived the round and used the ring in the twelfth, working from southpaw and picking his moments to jab.

Buatsi pressed forward and may have taken the final round, but his late rally could not overturn Hutchinson’s earlier work. Referee Victor Loughlin oversaw the contest.

Jack Rafferty (28-0-1, 18 KOs) earned a narrow unanimous decision over Hovhannes Martirosyan (20-2, 12 KOs) in the co-feature, with a controversial final-round knockdown proving crucial on two scorecards.

Martirosyan’s greater activity gave him the edge through much of the opening eight rounds. Rafferty suffered a cut over his right eyebrow in the tenth but fought back to take a close eleventh, leaving the contest heading toward a tense finish.

With blood running down his face, Rafferty caught Martirosyan with a right hand in the closing seconds of the twelfth. A push followed as Martirosyan went halfway through the ropes, but referee John Latham ruled a knockdown and administered a count as the bell sounded.

Two judges scored the fight 114-113 for Rafferty, while the third returned a wider 116-111 card. The knockdown supplied the winning margin on the two closer cards.

Gully Powar (14-1-1, 2 KOs) defeated Zack Miller (17-2, 3 KOs) by technical decision after their vacant British featherweight title fight was stopped at 1:32 of the tenth round.

Powar controlled the opening six rounds and continued to get the better of Miller, who developed swelling on his forehead following a clash of heads in the seventh. Referee Mark Lyson consulted the ringside doctor several times before the contest was halted and sent to the scorecards.

Bradley Rea (23-2, 12 KOs) delivered an emphatic finish against Ezra Taylor (13-2, 9 KOs), scoring two knockdowns to win the WBA Intercontinental light heavyweight title at 0:58 of the second round.

Rea dropped Taylor with a left hook to the chin, prompting a count from referee Michael Alexander. Taylor regained his feet, but Rea immediately attacked with a flurry that sent him down again and brought the stoppage.

Unbeaten middleweight Stephen Clarke (11-0, 2 KOs) controlled all eight rounds against Harley Collison (3-10-2). Referee Steve Gray scored the contest 80-72 for the Liverpool prospect.

Nineteen-year-old southpaw John Joe Carrigan (5-0, 5 KOs) maintained his perfect stoppage record, finishing Cheikh Diop (6-2, 4 KOs) at 1:50 of the fourth round of their scheduled six-round contest.

Javokhir Ummataliev (3-0, 1 KO) outlanded Atacayte Santana (4-4-2, 1 KO) throughout their six-round light heavyweight bout. Referee Mark Lyson awarded Ummataliev every round for a 60-54 victory.

Tumi Phillips (7-1, 1 KO) defeated Angelo Dragone (10-17-1, 1 KO) on points over four rounds. Dragone looked to hit and hold in the opener, but Phillips became more assertive in the second and third before an even final round. Lyson scored it 40-37.

Tony Yoka (16-3, 12 KOs) earned a six-round points victory over Kostiantyn Dovbyshchenko (10-22-1, 7 KOs). The 2016 Olympic super heavyweight gold medalist outlanded Dovbyshchenko through the first five rounds before the Ukrainian increased his activity in the sixth. Gray scored it 59-55.

Alex Arthur Jr. (6-0, 1 KO) completed a comfortable six-round win over Jose Aguirre (2-32, 1 KO). The Edinburgh southpaw controlled the contest throughout, winning 60-54 on Gray’s card.