On November 21, 2017, it was announced that Itami would be moving to the main roster as part of the cruiserweight division on "205 Live". On the December 18 episode of "Raw", Itami would make his main roster debut, aiding Finn Bálor to fend off and face Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas in a tag team match, which Itami and Bálor would win, turning face in the process. On the December 25 episode of "Raw", Itami would defeat The Brian Kendrick, in which Kendrick would suffer an injury following a Go to Sleep by Itami. This would lead to Itami entering a short feud with Kendrick's tag team partner, Gentleman Jack Gallagher.