When you get to know Canadian Tim Hague, you might be reminded of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Or at least one of the characters the current California governor played during his celebrated time as an actor.

No, Hague, the six-foot-four mixed martial arts heavyweight from Edmonton, doesn’t particularly resemble the American-Austrian bodybuilder, who as large as he may be is actually a couple of inches shorter. And Hague certainly doesn’t have the unforgettable accent we’ve come to know (and make fun of).

So, what do the two possibly have in common?

Do the words, "It’s not a tumor!" give you a hint?

That’s the famous, very cheesy line from the movie "Kindergarten Cop," in which John Kimble, the aggressive, tough-as-nails police detective played by Mr. Schwarzenegger, must go undercover as a substitute teacher to a class of kindergarten students.

Well, Hague’s path is kind of like that, only in reverse.

A kindergarten teacher by trade, the 275-pound Hague -- that's Mr. Hague to you -- has adopted a career in the sport for which he seems to be better suited, at least by appearance.

Saturday, he’ll get to see if his future in the Octagon is as bright as what Mr. Kimble’s turned out to be in the class room.

That’s when Hague, who has spent the past three years fighting on smaller Canadian circuits, makes his UFC debut taking on Pat Barry on the undercard of UFC 98 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

And Hague, whose nickname is The Thrashing Machine, is quite possibly less nervous about it than the first time he stepped in front of a group of four- and five-year-olds.

"I never expected to be in a kindergarten classroom," said Hague, who got his elementary education degree from the University of Alberta. "But once I got settled in it was (okay)."

"My biggest challenge was finding stuff to keep (the kids) busy all the time."

Hague figured after he got his degree would go right into the teaching profession and become a lifetime teacher. But the school he taught at was small and after his first year, there were only two students coming in, so his position got cut. That’s when he looked at the possibility of fighting full time.

While at university, he joined the school’s powerlifting team, and won the provincial bench-press title in his weight category. But he said he got bored with that.

In late 2005, he heard about some free training in mixed martial arts with fellow Edmonton fighter Travis Galbraith. He decided to give it a whirl. And the rest is history.

"I fell in love with (the sport)," Hague said. "It kind of took over."

Hague made his professional debut in September 2006, beating Eric MacDonald by guillotine choke. And having earned his blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, in which he has trained for three years, Hague has made even greater strides in a relatively short period of time.

The 25-year-old sports a career MMA record of 9-1, which includes winning and retaining a heavyweight belt in King of the Cage. And in October he avenged his only loss, earning a unanimous decision over Miodrag Petkovic at a Raw Combat event at the Stampede Corral in Calgary.

That gave him four straight win and his manager worked on getting him a deal with the UFC. He got the news he’d been signed and was going to take on Barry 15 weeks ago, and he started his intense training camp almost right away. The main focus: trying to come up with an answer to Barry’s strong kickboxing skills.

"I like the matchup with Barry," Hague said. "I’m more of a brawling wrestler. I just try to overwhelm my opponents, and he’s more of a technical kickboxer."

"It’s a clash of styles, so whoever works their gameplan the best is probably going to come out on top."

Hague, who came up with his nickname with the help of his boxing coach and it’s "to pay homage to my roots as a farmboy," trains at about 270 pounds and expects to be even a few pounds heavier when he walks into the cage.

Married with a son who’s nine and a half months old, Hague has never been to Las Vegas before, so he’s excited. But he’s not worried about the bright lights, of the city, or the whole UFC production.

"I can’t say that I have been worrying too much about it. I’ve done some things to prepare and gotten some help from some important people so I’m ready."