SPORTS

Force with Rahal: NHRA star sees fiance's IndyCar win

Rob McCurdy
Reporter
  • Courtney Force is a Funny Car veteran in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.
  • She is engaged to Verizon IndyCar Series driver Graham Rahal, a central Ohio native.
  • Force will race this weekend at Norwalk's Summit Motorsports Park with Rahal attending.
  • The ninth annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals run Thursday through Sunday.

NORWALK – Behind the wheel and strapped into a fire-breathing, 7,000 horsepower rocket ship with four wheels, Courtney Force is the epitome of cool.

Watching her fiance Graham Rahal slice and dice his way to the front of a Verizon IndyCar Series race on a high-speed oval, that's another story.

"When I'm in the car, I have control, or at least I feel like I can control the car," said Force, a Funny Car regular in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. "If something goes wrong, I have control to pull off the throttle. But when you're standing outside the car and you don't have any control over what the person is doing or the people around him, it definitely makes it more nerve-wracking. It's definitely harder to be a spectator for me."

Force stood atop Auto Club Speedway in California on Saturday with her mother Laurie and her father John Force — the legendary NHRA Funny Car champion — and watched Rahal do his thing.

"I was literally shaking I was so nervous," Force said. "Normally I don't let it get to me, but his mom was calling me and his sister was texting me. We were just going back and forth talking about the race. I was just nervous."

The nerves got to the point where she had to leave her perch and go trackside for the closing laps as Rahal weaved his way closer to his first Verizon IndyCar Series victory in seven years. It also gave her a greater appreciation for what her mother has lived with while watching John and daughters Ashley, Brittany as well as Courtney race at the highest level of drag racing.

"It's hard," Force said. "Especially with it being IndyCar, I'm not that familiar with it, so when someone makes a move, it startles you. In drag racing, I know it a lot better."

Rahal went on to win for the second time of his career, and Force enjoyed that part of the weekend, joining him in the victory circle for a celebratory kiss and pictures. She's hopeful Rahal can return the good luck this weekend when she comes to Summit Motorsports Park for the ninth annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals.

Rahal, who grew up in greater Columbus, will be in Norwalk watching his southern California-bred fiancee do her thing in return.

"He's always great to have out there for support and motivation. It's always very helpful. I told him you won in my home state, now I have a lot of pressure on me to go win in yours," she said. "That's the goal and now I have even more motivation to go out there and win this this week if the points weren't motivation enough."

Coming off her best season with four event victories and a fourth-place finish in the Funny Car points, Force hasn't enjoyed the same kind of success in 2015 with her Traxxas-sponsored Chevrolet. She is currently 11th in the standings, 41 points away from a spot in the top 10, which puts a driver into the six-event Countdown to the Championship. After Norwalk, there are just six races left to solidify a Countdown spot.

"I think we're working hard to close that gap between the 11th and 10th spot," she said, adding that the results are not indicative of the team that surrounds her. "We're really trying to push our way in there. We're fighting hard for it. We've got that motivation.

"It's only a matter of time before our luck turns around for the better we hope. We're going to stay strong and focus on the points. Every qualifying pass, we're looking to get those bonus points and work our way up there."

And one way to make that jump into a Countdown position would be to win in Norwalk and let Rahal experience the angst of four rounds followed by an NHRA winners circle celebration.

rmccurdy@gannett.com

419-521-7241

Twitter: @McMotorsport

Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals

Thursday: Lucas Oil Series qualifying, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Friday: Lucas Oil Series qualifying and eliminations, 8 a.m.; Pro Mod qualifying, 4:15 and 7 p.m.; Mello Yello Series qualifying, 5 and 7:45 p.m.; On-track activities end, 9:45 p.m.

Saturday: Lucas Oil Series eliminations, 8 a.m.; Pro Mod qualifying, 4:15 p.m., first-round eliminations, 7 p.m.; Mello Yello Series qualifying, 5 and 7:45 p.m.; Fireworks, 9:45 p.m.

Sunday: Pre-race ceremonies, 10 a.m.; Mello Yello Series and Lucas Oil Series eliminations, 11 a.m.; Finals, 3 p.m.; Winners circle, 4 p.m.

— Rob McCurdy