Orton returned on the New Year's Eve "Raw", helping Ryback and Sheamus fend off The Shield. On the January 4 "SmackDown", Orton declared his entry in the 2013 Royal Rumble match. On the January 11 "SmackDown" and the January 16 "Main Event", Orton was again attacked by The Shield during his matches with Antonio Cesaro. On the February 1 "SmackDown", Orton defeated longtime rival Wade Barrett to earn a spot in the Elimination Chamber match. On February 17 at Elimination Chamber, Orton eliminated Mark Henry and Chris Jericho before being the last man eliminated by Jack Swagger. In late February, Orton aligned himself with Sheamus to feud with the Shield. Over the next weeks, Orton and Sheamus saved each other from attacks by The Shield and Big Show. On the March 15 "SmackDown", Orton and Sheamus were then allowed to pick a third partner to face the Shield in a six-man tag team match at WrestleMania 29 an chose Ryback. Three days later on "Raw", however, Ryback was booked in another match for the event, leaving the spot open. Later that night, Big Show saved the two from an attack by The Shield and was immediately recruited as their partner. On April 7 at WrestleMania 29, Orton, Sheamus and Show were defeated by The Shield, after which, both men were knocked out by Show. The following night on "Raw", Orton and Sheamus faced off in a match to earn a match with Big Show, however, the match ended in a no contest after Show interfered. Orton and Sheamus then teamed up to defeat Show in two handicap matches, first on the April 12 "SmackDown" via count-out, and second on the April 15 "Raw" via pinfall. On the April 19 "SmackDown", Orton and Sheamus were defeated by Big Show and Mark Henry in a tag team match. The feud between Big Show and Orton led to an Extreme Rules match at Extreme Rules, which Orton won. After Extreme Rules, Orton began pairing with Daniel Bryan despite their poor relationship to face a common enemy in the Shield. On the June 14 "SmackDown", Orton teamed with Bryan and Kane to end the Shield's unpinned and unsubmitted streak in televised six-man tag matches. Three days later at Payback, Orton and Bryan's poor teamwork resulted in an unsuccessful challenge for Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins' WWE Tag Team Championships.