After Conquering Boston, Advisers Tell Nunn to Try for a New Jersey Knockout

Go East, young man.

Dan Goossen, manager of unbeaten North Hollywood middleweight Michael Nunn (17-0, 11 knockouts), believes that is sound advice for his fighter. So he has agreed to a 10-round match between Nunn and Mike Tinley, to be held in Atlantic City, N.J., on Sept. 19.

Tinley (19-3-1, seven knockouts) twice beat Robbie Sims (ranked No. 5 by the World Boxing Assn.), who, in turn, beat former three-time champion Roberto Duran in June.

Doug DeWitt, formerly ranked fourth by the WBA, handed the Tinley, 25, one of his losses on a 12-round decision.

Nunn, ranked ninth by the WBA, has been brought along carefully by Goossen following an excellent career as an amateur that included 168 wins in his 176 fights and culminated with a spot as an alternate on the 1984 U.S. Olympic boxing squad.

Almost two years after going to Goossen’s Ten Goose Boxing Club in North Hollywood from his home in Davenport, Iowa, Nunn, 22, is starting to take some giant steps he hopes will lead to the top of the middleweight division.

Last month, he easily won a unanimous 10-round decision over Charlie Boston of Trenton, N.J., in Las Vegas. Boston, who had risen as high as fifth in the WBA rankings before losing to DeWitt, was Nunn’s first Top 10 opponent.

Now comes Tinley, another New Jersey fighter, this one from Camden. And the chance for some East Coast exposure, important for a man trying to move up in the national rankings.

“People tell me, ‘When Michael Nunn comes out here, he’s not going to be able to handle Eastern fighters,’ ” Goossen says.

“Well, we’ve got a match with a fighter who has a real good reputation back East.”