By Steve Kim

Coming off his March 18th defeat of Bryant Cruz at the Madison Square Garden in New York, young lightweight contender Ryan Martin has gotten back to work.

To both prepare himself and others for upcoming bouts, Martin arrived in Big Bear yesterday to help Denis Shafikov prepare for IBF lightweight titlist, Robert Easter, which takes place on June 30 at the Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio.

"I'm glad to be back in Big Bear, this is beginning to feel like a second home for me. I get the chance to get away from everything outside of Boxing and really focus on my craft and what I want to accomplish in the sport,'' said the 24-year old Martin, who has a record of 18-0 (11 KO's).

Martin's manager, Timothy Van Newhouse told BoxingScene.com - "Abel thought Ryan would be great work in helping Shafikov prepare for Easter. It was a tough decision for Ryan as he's friendly with both camps, but he loves it up there so that definitely helped.  He's now had the chance to share the ring with some of the worlds top lightweights.

"I've been in discussions with Tom Loeffler and we are putting Ryan on TV, June 30th on ESPN in a 10 round bout. If All goes well, we should have some big things in store for him in the fall."

Martin saw action four times in 2016. He started off the year with a knockout of Rosbel Montoya in April, then a decision over Samuel Amoako in July, another decision win over Cesar Villarraga in September, and then closed out the year with a knockout of Yardely Armenta Cruz in December.

Steve Kim is the news editor for BoxingScene.com.