SACRAMENTO, Calif. — It's not how many times you get knocked down in life that counts — it's how many times you get back up. Sacramento boxer Blake McKernan is a living testimony of that.
Mckernan doesn't get knocked down too often inside the ring, but outside, he's taken quite a few blows over the last three years.
"It was an extremely hard time for me," said McKernan. "I went through three years of having back to back shoulder surgeries. I had six in total. And then I had a stage two sepsis infection. I was bed ridden. It was a time in my life that I really had to work on myself internally to find out who I was outside of boxing."
It's been over three years since McKernan's last fight, in which he blew out his shoulder. Ever since, he's been doing everything in his power to get back in the ring.
"It's been a long journey coming back," said McKernan. "A lot of people who witnessed my journey. I had the biggest fight at the highlight of my career three and a half years ago. Unfortunately I blew out my shoulder, and I've been fighting to get back. For me right now, more than any fight ever, I'm extremely focused right now."
That perseverance has paid off. Blake is set to make his comeback next Saturday in a fight he's headlining at the Doubletree hotel in Sacramento.
"It's going to be my first time fighting back in front of Sacramento since I debuted here," said McKernan. "After everything that I've been through and overcome, nothing is going to be able to stop me at this point. I feel completely invincible. I feel like this fight is going to be a stepping stone in the right direction."
And being a product of Sacramento, Blake would like to share some advice for the younger generation:
"I just want to be an inspiration to show people... I was born into poverty," said McKernan. "I came from absolutely nothing. I had no parents present. I was a high school dropout. I went on to become a decorated combat war vet and college graduate, and now I'm living my dream. I just want people within this younger generation to know as long as you believe in yourself, you can achieve anything you put your mind to."
McKernan is now back in school and pursuing his PhD in sports medicine and occupational therapy.
