British light-heavyweight Buatsi secured a victory yet unimpressive debut to his career under fresh promotional backing with a decision win over Zach Parker in the Manchester arena.
The Olympic medal winner's activity level seemingly secured him a judges' verdict in a close ten-round bout at the Manchester venue.
But Parker had his moments, delivering effective single shots in a contest where the techniques never quite clicked, with frequent clinching spoiling the fight.
The scoring judges had it 96-94 for to Buatsi, with the third a 95-95 draw.
"It wasn't my best showing but what do champions do? They prevail," the victor said in the ringside as he was met by negative reactions from the spectators.
The British fighter returned to winning ways after his maiden career setback - an epic battle with his previous opponent in last winter - to secure a 20th career victory.
Various analysts felt the challenger, 31, deserved the decision but the contender endured the second defeat of his 28-match career.
The Champion Earns Win in Dull Affair
His career development has plateaued in the past few years through management issues and considerable time of lack of fights.
Previously predicted as the next star of the British fight scene, he now finds himself trying to fulfil that early promise - possibly in what appears to be a final roll of the dice - under recent support.
He started carefully, with both competitors prepared to be aggressive in a tentative early stages.
The challenger, whose single earlier setback came at super-middleweight against his former opponent in 2022 after breaking his hand mid-fight, was competing in only his second appearance at light heavyweight.
By the halfway stage, Parker had stayed in contention, making life awkward for Buatsi, who operated with a solid defense to barely take the better rounds.
The crowd's patience diminished amid frequent holding, with the challenger slipping to the canvas various instances during clinches.
The underdog closed well, but multiple periods were difficult to score. Although, ex-champion Carl Frampton - working with the broadcast network - had it strongly leaning for the challenger, giving Buatsi just a single round.
Buatsi advances, but with the presence of heavy hitter Benavidez, and Russian star Dmitry Bivol dominating the weight class, the road to world glory - based on this performance - still seems difficult.
Hatton Homage Inspires All-Manchester Battle
In the co-main event, Lyndon Arthur overcame Rea by divided decision in a excellent Manchester vs Manchester fight to capture the European light-heavyweight belt.
The arena fell silent for a profoundly moving tribute before the fight as 10 bells rang in memory of the city's native Ricky Hatton, who passed away aged 46 in recently.
It was the premier televised boxing event in the location since Hatton's passing. As the final chime ended, the silence gave way to a roar of "only one Hatton".
The action during the bout matched the sentiment. Arthur was knocked down by a left hook squarely on the chin in the second round, getting up unsteadily to his footing on the count of eight.
But the Manchester United-red shorts of the fighter soon advanced again. Across the ring, the opponent - in competitive blue - was marked up quickly, significant bruising appearing under his eye as the pair exchanged powerful shots.
The challenger, twenty-seven, delivered effective strikes but the champion, thirty-four, matched the intensity with powerful upward punches as the pace seldom decreased over twelve rounds.
The victor barely secured the result with official scores of 114-114, narrow lead and 115-112, but each competitor were relentless and brave, exactly what their inspiration the legend embodied.
