Dwight Muhammad Qawi – “The Camden Buzzsaw,” dead at 72
Dwight Muhammad Qawi, an International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee, has died at age 72. Wanda King, Qawi’s sister, said he died Friday following a five-year battle with dementia.
Born Dwight Braxton in Baltimore, Maryland, Qawi later grew up in Camden, New Jersey and would go on to become a two-weight world champion after learning how to box in prison.
“The Camden Buzzsaw” competed in the boxing program at Rahway State Prison while serving a sentence for armed robbery and turned professional at age 25 soon after his release in 1978.
After converting to Islam, Qawi legally changed his name in 1982.
He would defeat Matthew Saad Muhammad in the 10th round to win the WBC light heavyweight belt in December 1981. Qawi stopped Saad again eight months later, this time in six rounds.
After a loss to Michael Spinks in March 1983, Qawi moved up in weight and took the WBA cruiserweight title from Piet Crous in July 1985. He lost the title to future heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield in a 15-rounder in July 1986.
Qawi later fought as a heavyweight, with George Foreman stopping him in seven rounds.
Qawi retired in 1998 at age 46 with a 41-11-1 record and 25 knockouts. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2004.
