Boxer Tony Bellew signs with Seven Dials

Seven Dials has acquired Everybody Has a Plan Until They Get Punched in the Face by former world champion boxer Tony Bellew.

Jamie Coleman, publishing director of Trapeze, struck the deal for world rights with David Riding at MBA Literary Agents, on behalf of Jim Erwood at Extra Time Management.

Slated as a lead release for Seven Dials in May 2021, Everybody Has a Plan Until They Get Punched in the Face will reveal "the secrets of maximising every ounce of your potential through resilience, positive mindset and facing your fears, honed over more than a decade in the boxing ring". It uses stories from Bellew’s life to set out, over 12 chapters, the strategies he has employed to deal with "the punches life has thrown at him" and how readers can too in their everyday lives.

Bellew, who grew up in Wavertree in Liverpool, retired from boxing in 2018, having fought in fights worth over £60m. He was a world champion and also held British, Commonwealth and European titles as a professional. He boxed for his country as an amateur and was a three-time ABA Heavyweight champion.

In 2020 he took part in Channel 4's "Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins", and his book is said to be "the end result of the work he left the show vowing to accomplish".

Coleman said: "Tony is an absolute one-off. People have been underestimating him his entire life but he’s used it as motivation to be the very best he can be in everything he puts his mind to. I can’t wait for people to meet him on the page—he’s as sharp, witty and full-blooded as you’d expect, but he’s also incredibly open about how to deal with setbacks, fear and insecurity. It’s no coincidence he was the stand-out star with viewers of 'Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins', as I think there’s every bit the same quality of wisdom to be found when fists are flying as when bullets are."

Bellew said: "When your job is to stand in front of a very big man who wants to knock you unconscious, you learn what’s important in life. As they say, in the ring there’s nowhere to hide. I was never the biggest or the strongest fighter but I had heart and grit and I always put time into the mental game. Since I retired, and since I was on 'SAS: Who Dares Wins', I’ve realised that people are really interested in the little tricks I used to keep my head in the right place and I’ve really enjoyed getting them all down in this book. I want to take readers into the ring and help them understand that even though it’s an extreme environment and somewhere they’re unlikely to ever be, there’s plenty they can learn there."

Everbody Has a Plan Until They Get Punched in the Face will be published in hardback, e-book and audiobook on 13th May 2021.