In WWE Greatest Royal Rumble, Ariya teamed up with his brother Shawn Daivari and insulted four Saudi Arabian prospects before being driven out by Mansoor. After an extended break from action to recover from an unspecified injury, Daivari returned on the November 28 episode of "205 Live", joining Hideo Itami in an attack on a local competitor. After that, he began accompanying Itami to the ring for his matches and interfering on his behalf. On January 29 episode of "205 Live" Daivari turned on Itami after the latter lost to Akira Tozawa, the same day that Itami requested his release from WWE. On the March 23 episode of "205 Live", Daivari defeated Cedric Alexander, following a distraction from Oney Lorcan. On the April 23 episode of "205 Live", Daivari defeated Lorcan to become the number one contender for the Cruiserweight Championship. However at Money in the Bank, he failed to capture the title from Tony Nese. Shortly after he would feud with Oney Lorcan which lead to a Anything Goes match which he was defeated to end there feud.