UK light heavyweight Buatsi secured a victory yet underwhelming debut to life under fresh promotional backing with a decision win over Zach Parker in Manchester.
The Olympic bronze medallist's activity level likely gained him a judges' verdict in a competitive 10-round bout at the boxing arena.
But Parker found success, connecting with powerful individual punches in a contest where the styles failed to mesh, with excessive holding spoiling the contest.
Two judges scored it 96-94 for to the winner, with the final judge a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my greatest showing but what do champions do? They succeed," Buatsi stated in the ringside as he was faced negative reactions from the crowd.
The British fighter bounced back after his initial pro loss - an memorable fight with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a 20th pro success.
Various analysts felt Parker, thirty-one, merited the win but the contender experienced the second defeat of his 28-match professional journey.
Buatsi Claims Win in Slow Affair
Buatsi's progress has plateaued in recent times through promotional disputes and considerable time of inactivity.
Once tipped as the future of the British fight scene, he now is positioned trying to realize his potential - possibly in what feels like a ultimate opportunity - under fresh management.
He opened tentatively, with both competitors prepared to be aggressive in a cagey initial rounds.
The challenger, whose sole prior loss came at super middleweight against John Ryder in 2022 after suffering a hand injury during the bout, was competing in only his second appearance at light-heavyweight.
By the fight's midpoint, Parker had stayed in contention, causing problems for the favorite, who worked behind a solid defense to edge the cleaner rounds.
The audience's tolerance diminished amid regular grabbing, with the challenger going down multiple occasions during close exchanges.
The underdog ended stronger, but several stanzas were challenging to assess. Although, former world champion the boxing analyst - working with the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for Parker, giving Buatsi just one round.
The victor moves on, but with the likes of heavy hitter David Benavidez, and Eastern European fighter Dmitry Bivol leading the category, the journey to titles - on this evidence - still appears challenging.
Hatton Homage Fuels Local Rivalry Battle
In the secondary fight, Arthur beat Rea by divided decision in a terrific local rivalry fight to capture the European light-heavyweight title.
The venue grew hushed for a extremely emotional memorial ahead of the contest as a bell ceremony sounded in honor of local hero Hatton, who succumbed 46 years old in September.
It was the initial significant broadcast boxing event in the location since the passing of Hatton. As the final chime ended, the silence gave way to a chant of "there's only one Hatton".
The action within the ring equaled the emotion. Arthur was sent to the canvas by a powerful punch flush on the face in the early round, standing uncertainly to his footing on the referee's count.
But the Manchester United-red shorts of the fighter soon pressed ahead again. From the other corner, Rea - in opposing blue - was marked up soon, noticeable damage appearing under his orbital area as the fighters traded hard punches.
Rea, twenty-seven, landed power punches but Arthur, 34, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the pace seldom decreased over 12 rounds.
Arthur barely secured the verdict with official scores of even score, narrow lead and wider gap, but each competitor were persistent and full of heart, exactly what their idol the legend stood for.
