British light heavyweight Buatsi made a winning yet underwhelming beginning to his career under recent management with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level likely gained him a majority decision in a competitive ten-round bout at the Co-op Live Arena.
But the challenger had his moments, landing some telling single shots in a match where the styles failed to mesh, with excessive holding spoiling the contest.
The scoring judges scored it 96-94 for to the winner, with the third a 95-95.
"It wasn't my greatest performance but how do champions respond? They succeed," the victor stated in the arena as he was greeted with boos from the audience.
The British fighter bounced back after his first professional defeat - an epic battle with Callum Smith in last winter - to claim a 20th pro success.
Some ringside observers thought Parker, thirty-one, deserved the victory but the contender suffered the second loss of his 28-bout career.
The Champion Earns Victory in Dull Affair
The fighter's advancement has stalled in recent times through promotional disputes and long spells of lack of fights.
Previously predicted as the rising talent of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - perhaps in what feels like a last chance - under new promotional backing.
He began cautiously, with the two boxers ready to be aggressive in a tentative early stages.
Parker, whose single earlier setback came at super middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after damaging his hand during the bout, was participating in his second appearance at light heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had stayed in contention, causing problems for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to edge the better periods.
The audience's tolerance decreased during constant clinching, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during close exchanges.
Parker closed well, but several stanzas were hard to judge. Nevertheless, ex-champion the boxing analyst - working with Dazn - had it particularly wide for the challenger, awarding Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor moves on, but with the caliber of hard hitter Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Bivol ruling the division, the path to championship success - judging by this showing - still appears challenging.
Ricky Hatton Homage Inspires Local Rivalry Battle
In the co-main event, Arthur beat Rea by close verdict in a terrific Manchester vs Manchester fight to capture the European light heavyweight title.
The arena fell silent for a profoundly moving tribute prior to the bout as 10 bells rang in memory of Manchester's own Ricky Hatton, who passed away at age 46 in last month.
It was the premier televised match card in the city since Hatton's death. As the concluding sound ended, the silence gave way to a chant of "only one Ricky Hatton".
The action inside the ropes reflected the sentiment. The eventual winner was knocked down by a significant blow squarely on the jaw in the early round, getting up unsteadily to his position on the referee's count.
But the red-colored attire of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. On the opposite side, the opponent - in rival City blue - was marked up early, significant bruising developing under his face as the pair landed hard punches.
The challenger, 27, connected with strong blows but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the action seldom decreased over 12 rounds.
Arthur barely secured the result with scoring tallies of 114-114, narrow lead and wider gap, but each competitor were determined and courageous, exactly what their hero Hatton stood for.
