Buck Shines, Milburne Wins Heavyweight Rematch At SMOKE 23 In Leonardtown

LEONARDTOWN, Md. — Southern Maryland SMOKE 23, a sanctioned USA Boxing card for the South Atlantic Association, was held Saturday evening at The Rex in Leonardtown, Maryland.

Head coach Daryl Hinmon and Knowledge Boxing Center are the sanction holders for the SMOKE events.

SMOKE 24 will be at The Rex again Oct. 10, 2026. Hinmon says the community can expect the same great action.

Professional ring announcer Corey “Skybox Sensei” Dyson announced the national anthem singer, veteran Jay Attys, and the evening began.

Hinmon stated that Knowledge Boxing Center and Calvert County’s own Isaiah Buck put on a solid performance for all of their fans. Buck (143 pounds) defeated Luis Carranza of Strike Studio. Buck controlled the fight, stayed poised and concentrated through every blow.

“He works hard in the gym and it showed in his performance,” Hinmon said. “His opponent came to win and fought a great fight as well and we appreciate the bump. We get to see a side of Buck and all our boxers the general public has not seen yet, and that is their performances in the gym. Buck has plenty of upside and myself and Coach John look forward to continuing to guide his career.”

The last matchup of the night was the exciting heavyweight rematch, 270-pound Navy veteran Terry Milburne (Kaizen MMA) versus 320-pound Darian Cooper. Cooper got the nod in their prior match.

Milburne’s right jab to the jaw of Cooper was hard to combat. The heavyweights ended the 16th fight of the night with prayer.

They will once again be featured on the SMOKE 24 card.

Seeing The Community Thrive

“We take an extreme amount of pride presenting sanctioned, Olympic-style amateur boxing in Southern Maryland,” Hinmon said. “Our shows keep the kids focused and out of trouble because the opportunity of competing on a Knowledge Boxing show gives them a goal to anchor to. They really put their all into their preparation, which consumes their time and greatly decreases the chances of them being idle and getting into trouble.”

Hinmon said it’s the main reason they work so hard to provide a professional-level promoted show.

“We are always about the development of the human being above anything else, but we are also proud of the economic impact our shows have in Southern Maryland.”

“All of the out-of-town boxers, their friends and family all travel to our community and buy food, drinks, gas, stay in our hotels and shop in town, etc. We make locals aware of other great Southern Maryland small businesses as well, such as Garage Doors & More and Cheseldine Tire & Auto, who have supported our events for years.

“Many of our boxers from Baltimore, D.C., and Northern Virginia have never been to Leonardtown, so we are happy to introduce them to our slice of heaven on earth and keep them coming back for more. It’s really a win-win-win for the kids, the community, Knowledge Boxing and Southern Maryland.”

The only professional boxer to come from St. Mary’s County and through the Knowledge Boxing Center is 33-year-old super welterweight Teddy P. Fuller (5-1-0), originally from Teaneck, New Jersey.

Fuller’s seventh professional matchup will be Saturday, Aug. 15, at the Capital Clubhouse in Waldorf, which will be hosted by Davis Boxing Promotions.

“If anyone would like to go with us, reach out to the gym for tickets. After that, we will take our Masters females to New Jersey for a national tournament.”

Hinmon said that KBC has always supported female boxers as well.

“Knowledge Boxing has always been a huge proponent of female boxing in the DMV and we are already working hard to secure a female bout for the next show,” Hinmon said. “Coaches of female boxers, please reach out to us to get your [ladies] matched up. We believe in evenly matched fights based on weight, age and level of experience.”

See Knowledge Boxing contributor “Sugar” Shell interview ring doctor Dr. John Wills, who has been keeping boxers safe in the ring since 2014, on Facebook.

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