On May 7, 2016, Perkins defeated Fred Yehi at Evolve 61 to qualify for WWE's Cruiserweight Classic tournament. In the tournament he defeated Da Mack in the first round, Johnny Gargano in the second round, Rich Swann in the quarter finals, Kota Ibushi in the semifinals and Gran Metalik in the finals to win the tournament and become the inaugural WWE Cruiserweight Champion. His entrance paid homage to the Nintendo Entertainment System. Perkins retained the title against Brian Kendrick at Clash of Champions, but lost the title in a rematch at Hell in a Cell after Kendrick faked a knee injury. At , Perkins failed to regain the title in a triple threat match against Kendrick and new champion, Rich Swann.