British light heavyweight Buatsi made a winning yet disappointing start to life under fresh promotional backing with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's work rate seemingly secured him a majority decision in a competitive 10-round fight at the boxing arena.
But Parker found success, landing some telling single shots in a contest where the techniques failed to mesh, with constant grabbing marring the contest.
The scoring judges judged it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best showing but what defines champions? They win," Buatsi commented in the ring as he was faced negative reactions from the audience.
The Londoner bounced back after his first professional defeat - an thrilling contest with Callum Smith in last winter - to secure a 20th pro success.
Some ringside observers felt the challenger, 31, deserved the win but the British boxer endured the second setback of his 28-bout career.
The Champion Claims Triumph in Uneventful Match
Buatsi's progress has stalled in recent years through promotional disputes and long spells of lack of fights.
Once tipped as the next star of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what seems like a ultimate opportunity - under new promotional backing.
He began cautiously, with neither fighter prepared to be aggressive in a calculated opening few rounds.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after damaging his hand in the contest, was making just his second appearance at light heavyweight.
By the middle rounds, the underdog had kept it close, causing problems for Buatsi, who operated with a protective stance to narrowly win the cleaner rounds.
The spectators' acceptance diminished during regular grabbing, with Parker slipping to the canvas several times during close exchanges.
Parker ended stronger, but multiple periods were challenging to assess. Although, former world champion the boxing analyst - working with Dazn - had it significantly in favor for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just a single round.
Buatsi moves on, but with the presence of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the journey to titles - based on this performance - still looks steep.
Hatton Homage Inspires Local Rivalry Battle
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Bradley Rea by divided decision in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester battle to capture the continental title.
The arena fell silent for a extremely emotional tribute prior to the bout as 10 bells sounded in honor of local hero Hatton, who died at age 46 in recently.
It was the initial significant broadcast match card in the location since Hatton's death. As the final chime disappeared, the silence gave way to a chant of "there's only one Ricky Hatton".
The fighting during the bout reflected the emotion. Arthur was floored by a significant blow flush on the face in the initial stage, standing uncertainly to his footing on the count of eight.
But the traditional red equipment of the fighter soon advanced again. On the opposite side, Rea - in opposing blue - was marked up soon, significant bruising forming under his face as the duo landed hard punches.
Rea, twenty-seven, connected with strong blows but Arthur, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the action rarely dropped over the full distance.
Arthur edged the verdict with official scores of even score, narrow lead and clearer margin, but the two athletes were relentless and full of heart, everything their inspiration Hatton stood for.
