Prior to their narrow win over Italy in the final game of the Six Nations, Wales were on a seven-game losing streak.
That included a whitewash in WXV1, where they took on the likes of hosts New Zealand, Canada and Australia.
“It was superb to be there and have that opportunity, but the road into professionalism is never a straight line,” said Cunningham.
“We got catapulted into that level of rugby and made us reflect hard on it.”
Cunningham said WXV2 – where Wales will play the likes of Scotland, Italy, South Africa and Japan – would give his side a chance to be more competitive and build momentum.
“That’s where we need to be, the stepping stone to the next level,” he said.
WXV2 will be played in South Africa in September, while WXV3 takes place against much lower ranked opposition in Dubai.
Cunningham said playing in the lowest tier would not be a disaster for Wales but stressed “it’s not what we want”.
“If we did go to WXV3, it’s another opportunity to go there and grow our game, but WXV2 is where we’d like to be,” he said.
Cunningham added his side are focusing more on the process than the pressure this weekend.
“It’s not so much about scoring four tries to get a bonus point, it is about winning the game,” he said.
“We will do our very best to find a way to win and put our game plan on the field.”
