Riyadh, Jan 9 (IANS): After one week of racing and eight stages (one cancelled) all top contenders are incredibly close in the overall standings of the Dakar Rally.

In the overall standings, Howes Skyler (30h34m16s) of Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing is placed on top, Benavides Kevin (30h34m29s) from Red Bull KTM Rally Factory team is in second place, followed by Klein Mason (30h34m29s) and Price Toby (30h36m14s) on third and fourth position respectively.

Monster Energy Honda team's Quintanilla is ranked fifth with a gap of just 2:45 minutes to the leader, Van Beveren is in sixth position (2:49 minutes gap to the leader) and Nacho Cornejo is ninth (19:32 minutes gap to the leader).

Tuesday is time for the well-deserved rest day at the Dakar Rally. All riders will be transferred to a hotel and be able to recover their energy for another week of action.

In the meantime, mechanics and engineers from the team will work hard to revise the Honda CRF 450 Rally in every detail -- starting with a wash and continuing with the check of each component.

"It has been a long and hard week for all, starting with the abandonment of Ricky Brabec after a crash. I have to say that the competition level is really high. All contenders are very close, so I think we are in a good position to start another week and pursue our goal to move into the top standings. Our str'tegy hasn't changed so let's continue to be solid and consistent in a terrain where we know we have the best skills to succeed," said Ruben Faria, General Manager of Monster Energy Honda Team.