Heavyweight Dillian Whyte picked up a majority points victory over American Jermaine Franklin in London.
Whyte, 34, nearly stopped Franklin in the closing seconds after 12 mostly stale and uneventful rounds.
Two judges gave Whyte the go-ahead with cards 116-112, while the third saw it as a 115-115 draw.
Anthony Joshua watched at ringside as eyes turned to a potential rematch between the former British rivals in the new year.
As Whyte exchanged some cordial words with Joshua at ringside, Franklin expressed his displeasure with the scorecards and called for a rematch.
“I felt like I was robbed on the decision, I felt like I had done enough,” the 29-year-old said.
Whyte was fighting under new trainer Buddy McGirt for the first time and admitted he was “fighting under a new set of instructions”, revealing his corner told him to stay behind his jab.
“An undefeated heavyweight is the hardest thing to beat on this planet,” Whyte said.
“He’s undefeated and he’s got a lot of beans in his body. His stock has gone up tonight.
“I probably could have been a bit more active and thrown a few more big shots.”
Whyte’s comeback falls flat
Whyte had 19 knockouts on his record before meeting Franklin and there were high hopes for an explosive comeback inside Wembley’s OVO Arena.
The Jamaican-born fighter was in action for the first time since being stopped by WBC champion Tyson Fury at Wembley Stadium in April.
But Whyte set the tone for a slow-paced fight from the first bell, preferring to feel Franklin rather than push for early success.
It was the American who was throwing most of the punches and he did some minor damage to Whyte in the third with a quick right and left hand combination.
Franklin landed another long right in the fourth, with almost nothing of note coming from Whyte.
Just when it seemed like a snail’s pace had been established, Whyte fired a flurry of hits in a welcome expression of intent. But the moment was fleeting.
The fifth round, and the entire fight in fact, followed the same pattern.
Whyte would momentarily inject fire into the fight, pushing Franklin back, only to take his foot off the gas.
After an opener with no significant exchanges, Franklin called Whyte on him. The crowd, now mostly chatting with each other, tried to goad both fighters to keep going.
Whyte was then tagged out by a right hand from Franklin, but again seemed oblivious to any power his opponent might possess.
He just smiled at Franklin and slowed down again.
Cheers from the crowd fell on deaf ears as Whyte thought he was ahead of the scorecards and looked content to stroll through to the final bell.
Whatever plan he was trying to execute almost paid off in the final seconds of round 10 as he landed a big right on Franklin.
The American shivered, but did not come down. Hopes rose in the arena for a late knockout, but they were quickly dashed as Whyte and Franklin found their previous rhythm for the final two rounds.
Whyte, however, finished the fight on the front foot, hurting Franklin as he landed his first clean left hand.
His previously undefeated opponent stumbled back into the ropes, but the bell saved Franklin.
It was an odd performance from Whyte, who built his career on his crowd-pleasing fights and explosive nature inside and outside the ring.
But with Joshua watching and their rematch some seven years in the making, perhaps Whyte will feel he’s had his chance to convince his long-term nemesis to face him again without any harm.
Wardley survives shooting against Gorman
Fabio Wardley won the British heavyweight title after going through a grueling encounter with Nathan Gorman.
Gorman started brilliantly and broke Wardley’s nose in the second round. Blood began to flow from Wardley’s visibly broken nose and Gorman tried to move in to finish the fight.
But the injury sparked a fierce response from Wardley, who began to come forward and began to land on a stunned Gorman.
He put Gorman down with a right hand and hovered over his opponent, roaring in his direction.
Gorman was down again moments later, but the bell came to save the 26-year-old.
It proved to be a short reprieve, as Gorman was caught by a huge right hand in the third and collapsed against the ropes.
He got back to his feet, but with Wardley putting the pressure on, Gorman’s corner saved him from further damage by throwing in the towel.
“It was a really exciting heavyweight performance from Fabio Wardley,” promoter Eddie Hearn said of his fighter.
Wardley is now undefeated in 15 outings with 14 knockouts.
“Twenty-twenty-three is Fabio Wardley’s year. It’s the year I really get going,” said the 27-year-old.
