British light heavyweight Buatsi earned a win yet unimpressive debut to life under recent management with a points victory over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's punch output appeared to earn him a split decision in a competitive ten-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But the challenger found success, landing some telling clean blows in a contest where the styles didn't complement each other, with excessive holding spoiling the action.
The scoring judges scored it 96-94 for to the winner, with the final judge a even score.
"It wasn't my finest performance but what do champions do? They succeed," the victor said in the arena as he was met by boos from the audience.
The Londoner got back to winning after his maiden career setback - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in February - to earn a twentieth professional win.
Various analysts thought Parker, thirty-one, merited the victory but the Derbyshire fighter experienced the second defeat of his 28-fight professional journey.
The Champion Earns Triumph in Uneventful Affair
Buatsi's progress has slowed in the past few years through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.
Once tipped as the future of UK boxing, he now finds himself trying to realize his potential - possibly in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under new promotional backing.
He started carefully, with neither fighter willing to overcommit in a cagey opening few rounds.
Parker, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after breaking his hand during the bout, was making just his second bout at light heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, the underdog had kept it close, causing problems for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to barely take the more effective periods.
The spectators' acceptance diminished amid constant clinching, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during grappling.
The underdog closed well, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. Nevertheless, ex-champion the boxing analyst - working with Dazn - had it particularly wide for Parker, scoring for Buatsi just only one stanza.
The victor progresses, but with the likes of power puncher David Benavidez, and Russian champion Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Hatton Memorial Inspires Manchester Derby Contest
In the supporting bout, Lyndon Arthur beat Rea by close verdict in a outstanding local rivalry fight to win the European light-heavyweight belt.
The arena became quiet for a extremely emotional homage ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony sounded in memory of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who died at age 46 in September.
It was the first major televised match card in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the last bell ended, the silence became a chant of "only one Ricky Hatton".
The competition during the bout reflected the feeling. Arthur was floored by a significant blow flush on the chin in the initial stage, getting up unsteadily to his feet on the eight count.
But the traditional red equipment of Arthur soon came forward again. Across the ring, Rea - in competitive blue - was injured quickly, heavy swelling developing under his orbital area as the pair landed punishing blows.
Rea, 27, landed power punches but Arthur, 34, matched the intensity with effective uppercuts as the intensity seldom decreased over the full distance.
Arthur edged the verdict with judges scorecards of 114-114, 115-113 and 115-112, but each competitor were relentless and full of heart, exactly what their inspiration the legend represented.
