Recently released UFC veteran Keith Jardine didn't stay long testing the waters of free agency.

According to a report from Loretta Hunt of Sherdog, "The Dean of Mean" has signed with the fledgling Texas-based Shark Fights organization and will make his debut against the promotion's light heavyweight champion, Trevor Prangley in a non-title affair September 11 in Lubbock, Texas.

0-4 in his last four UFC appearances, Jardine (15-8-1) will be looking to string together a few wins to earn his ticket back to the Octagon, but facing Prangley (22-6-1) definitely isn't the easy route to his desired destination.

The 38-year-old South African fighter who was BodogFight's only middleweight champion has only lost twice in the past three years, with his most recent blemish coming against Tim Kennedy at Strikeforce: Los Angeles last month and has beaten the likes of Andrei Semenov, Chael Sonnen, Matt Horwich and Travis Lutter.

Jardine is no slouch himself, having beaten an equally impressive laundry list of opponents during his stint in the UFC including Brandon Vera, Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin and Wilson Gouveia.

The promotion is expected to announce several other marquee match-ups in the coming weeks.
-Cage Potato