On May 7, 2016, Gulak defeated Tracy Williams at "Evolve 61" to qualify for WWE's upcoming Cruiserweight Classic tournament. The tournament began on June 23, with Gulak defeating Harv Sihra in his first round match. On July 14, Gulak was eliminated from the tournament by Zack Sabre Jr. Gulak appeared on September 14 episode of "NXT", losing to Hideo Itami. On September 26 episode of "Raw", Gulak made his main roster debut, teaming with Lince Dorado in a losing effort to Cedric Alexander and Rich Swann. On the Hell in a Cell pre-show, Gulak established himself as a heel, teaming up with Tony Nese and Ariya Daivari in a losing effort to Cedric Alexander, Lince Dorado, and Sin Cara. On the Survivor Series pre-show, Gulak, Tony Nese, and Ariya Daivari lost to T.J. Perkins, Rich Swann, and Noam Dar. In December, it was confirmed that Gulak had signed with WWE. On January 2, 2017, episode of "Raw", Gulak won his first match on the main roster against Cedric Alexander.