UFC's Brian Foster gets tuneup at Cage Warriors 44, meets vet Jack Mason

Sidelined for a year due to injuries, UFC welterweight Brian Foster has received permission to fight outside the organization and now meets Jack Mason in a 181-pound catchweight bout at Cage Warriors 44.

Cage Warriors executive Graham Boylan today confirmed the plans with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).

The event takes place Oct. 1 at HMV Forum in London and streams online in North America.

Foster (15-5) vs. Mason (17-8) takes the co-headlining slot.

Earlier this year, Foster was pulled from UFC 129 after doctors discovered a brain hemorrhage, which followed another devastating injury for the fighter: a hard kick to the groin in early March that caused one of his testicles to burst. Doctors were forced to remove it.

Now cleared to fight again, the hard-hitting Foster gets a big test in his "tuneup" with submission specialist Mason, who recently was featured in our "Fight Path" series. The English middleweight is 16-4 since an early-career four-fight losing streak.

A victory over such a tough opponent should put Foster back in the UFC, where he's won three of his past four fights (and six of his past eight). All 15 of Foster's victories have come via stoppage, and he's won two UFC fight-night bonuses in the process.

Also slated for Cage Warriors 44 main card is a headliner between Joseph Duffy (10-0) and Ivan Musardo (17-6-1) for the vacant lightweight title.

Rounding out the main card are heavyweights Jay Mortimore (6-2) vs. Dayman Lake (1-0), lightweights Kevin Donnelly (6-3) vs. Brad Wheeler (6-5), and lightweights Graham Turner (17-6) vs. Ashleigh Grimshaw (10-7-1).