He made his World Wrestling Federation (WWF) debut on July 6, 1997 at the WWF pay-per-view losing to The Great Sasuke but getting a huge reaction from the crowd. He lost a rematch to Sasuke the following night on "Raw". He was entered in the WWF Light Heavyweight Title Tournament where the winner would become the first WWF Light Heavyweight Champion, he beat Devon Storm in the quarterfinal, Aguila in the semifinal. On December 7, 1997, Michinoku defeated Brian Christopher at to become the first WWF Light Heavyweight Champion recognized by the WWF. Taka successfully defended the WWF Light Heavyweight Title at against Pantera, at WrestleMania XIV against Aguila and against multiple different opponents on Raw is War and Shotgun Saturday Night. After holding the title for more than 10 months, Michinoku lost the title to Christian at on October 18.