British light heavyweight Buatsi secured a victory yet underwhelming debut to life under recent management with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic medal winner's punch output seemingly secured him a split decision in a tight ten-round contest at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger had his moments, landing some telling clean blows in a contest where the approaches failed to mesh, with constant grabbing disrupting the action.
The officials had it 96-94 for to the winner, with the remaining official a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best showing but what do champions do? They succeed," Buatsi stated in the ring as he was greeted with negative reactions from the audience.
The Londoner returned to winning ways after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a twentieth professional win.
Some ringside observers felt Parker, thirty-one, deserved the victory but the British boxer suffered the second loss of his 28-match professional journey.
The Champion Earns Triumph in Slow Match
The fighter's advancement has stalled in the past few years 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 - perhaps in what feels like a final roll of the dice - under fresh management.
He started carefully, with both competitors prepared to overcommit in a cagey opening few rounds.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at super middleweight against John Ryder in two years ago after damaging his hand mid-fight, was making just his second appearance at the higher weight class.
By the halfway stage, Parker had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who utilized a solid defense to barely take the more effective stanzas.
The audience's tolerance decreased amid constant clinching, with Parker going down multiple occasions during clinches.
Parker finished the stronger, but multiple periods were hard to judge. Nevertheless, previous titleholder Carl Frampton - commentating on the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor moves on, but with the caliber of hard hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Memorial Fuels All-Manchester Battle
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur beat Rea by divided decision in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester battle to secure the continental title.
The stadium grew hushed for a profoundly moving memorial before the fight as a bell ceremony sounded in remembrance of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in last month.
It was the first major televised match card in the city since Hatton's passing. As the concluding sound ended, the silence transitioned to a shout of "there's only one Hatton".
The action within the ring reflected the sentiment. Arthur was knocked down by a significant blow squarely on the chin in the early round, standing uncertainly to his position on the eight count.
But the Manchester United-red attire of Arthur soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in competitive blue - was marked up soon, heavy swelling appearing under his orbital area as the pair exchanged punishing blows.
The challenger, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but Arthur, thirty-four, fought fire with fire with effective uppercuts as the action hardly diminished over twelve rounds.
Arthur barely secured the verdict with official scores of draw, narrow lead and clearer margin, but both fighters were persistent and full of heart, exactly what their hero the legend stood for.
