Overview

• Qawi discovered boxing during incarceration at Rahway State Prison and turned professional in 1978.
• He captured the WBC light heavyweight title in 1981 by stopping Matthew Saad Muhammad and added the WBA cruiserweight crown in 1985.
• His 1986 split-decision bout with Evander Holyfield is regarded as one of boxing’s greatest cruiserweight contests.
• After retiring in 1998 with a 41-11-1 record, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2004.
• He spent his later years training fighters and counseling youth before dementia forced him to withdraw from public life.