On the August 22 episode of "Raw", Kendrick was announced as part of the upcoming cruiserweight division. On the September 19 episode of "Raw", Kendrick made his official main roster return, winning a number one contender's fatal four-way match against Cedric Alexander, Gran Metalik and Rich Swann for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship. At Clash of Champions, Kendrick failed to win the title from TJ Perkins. After the match, Kendrick embraced Perkins, but attacked him with a headbutt afterwards, re-establishing himself as a heel in the process. The next night on "Raw", Kendrick challenged Perkins to another match. At Hell in a Cell on October 30, Kendrick defeated Perkins to win the Cruiserweight Championship, after faking an injury. At Survivor Series in an interpromotional match, Kendrick retained the title against SmackDown brand's Kalisto, winning by disqualification. On the premiere episode of "205 Live" on November 29, Kendrick lost the title to Rich Swann, ending his reign at 30 days. The following week on "205 Live", Kendrick lost to Swann in a rematch for the title. At , Kendrick again failed to regain the title in a triple threat match also involving TJ Perkins.