What was once thought improbable may soon be a reality. 

Georges St-Pierre, the greatest welterweight mixed martial artist in history, today announced on The MMA Hour that he has decided to end his hiatus from the Octagon and return to the UFC. 

St-Pierre said there are still issues that need to be worked out between his management and Zuffa. One notable issue is that St-Pierre is a long-time endorser of Under Armour athletic wear, while the UFC's official clothing company is Reebok. But St-Pierre said the negotiations are ongoing to figure out the details. And, for the first time since he walked away, St-Pierre sounded like a man who has his heart and mind set on returning. 

"I'm ready. I'm an emotional guy. My agents, even before I came on the show today, they briefed me," St-Pierre said. "They said, ‘don't say this, don't say that.' 

"They briefed me, saying ‘we're in negotiations, remember.' Like yeah, don't worry, I'm not a kid. But I'm an emotional guy, and when I get emotional sometimes, I say things that are not necessarily in the best of my interests, and I'm trying to not go overboard with that." 

St-Pierre stepped away from the Octagon after a close decision win over Johny Hendricks in late 2013. But he never stopped training, and recently went through a "test camp" to see if his body could hold up to the rigors of real training, and also to see if his heart was still in the fighting game. The training camp proved to St-Pierre that he was still athletically capable of performing at his best, but it also showed that the fire in his belly for competition has not diminished.

For a man with nothing left to prove, that is an important discovery.

"I love my sport and I still feel I'm at my best right now. The clock is running. I'm not getting any younger," he said. "I'm in the peak of my career. If there is a shot, there is another goal, another run, I better do it and do it quick. Because it is time to do it now."