Courtney Force is the youngest daughter of John Force and his wife Laurie, and the younger sister of fellow NHRA racers Ashley and Brittany Force. She attended Esperanza High School in Anaheim, California, and later graduated from California State University, Fullerton, with a degree in Communications. The Force family's racing endeavors were documented on the A&E reality series Driving Force, which brought their competitive world to a broader television audience.
Force earned her NHRA competition license in 2005 and her Alcohol-Fuel license in 2008. She began her competitive driving in Super Comp before moving to Top Alcohol Dragster (TA/D) alongside her sister Brittany in 2008. In 2009, she reached the final round at two events — Seattle and Pomona — claiming victory at the NHRA Northwest Nationals in Kent, Washington, on July 19, 2009. She also recorded a career-best reaction time of .006 seconds at the season finale at Pomona Raceway.
Her early sponsors included Brandsource and, from 2009, Sanyo and Ford. After her sister Ashley retired from competition following the 2011 season, Courtney tested a Funny Car and earned her NHRA Funny Car license, paving the way for her move to the top category.
Force made her Funny Car debut at the 52nd annual NHRA Winternationals, qualifying 12th with a 4.199-second elapsed time at 307.44 mph. In the opening round she defeated Bob Tasca III before losing to teammate Mike Neff in the second round. Her primary rookie sponsor was Traxxas.
On August 5, 2012, Force claimed her first Funny Car victory at the NHRA Northwest Nationals in Seattle, defeating Matt Hagan in the final. The following season she became the first woman to qualify number one at the O'Reilly Auto Parts Winternationals, and then became the first female Funny Car driver to win that event, beating Ron Capps in the final.
In 2014, Force passed her sister Ashley's record for the most Funny Car wins by a female driver in NHRA history. That same year, at the Kansas Nationals, she secured the 100th win by a female driver in NHRA competition by defeating Cruz Pedregon in the Funny Car final — a landmark moment for women in the sport.
From 2017 to 2018, Force drove under the Advance Auto Parts banner. At the 2017 NHRA Finals in Pomona, California, she drove a co-branded car supported by entertainer Taylor Swift. The partnership drew considerable media attention to the sport.
On January 24, 2019, Force announced her immediate retirement from professional drag racing. Her career concluded with multiple Funny Car victories, several national event records, and a series of historic firsts for female competitors in the sport.
Force married IndyCar driver Graham Rahal, son of 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal. The couple have three daughters: Harlan Ann Rahal (born November 2020), Tinley Leighton Rahal (born September 2022), and Fallon Ruth Rahal (born October 17, 2025). Following the birth of her second daughter, Force stepped back from her foundation and sponsorship work to focus on family.
Courtney Force's career established new benchmarks for women in NHRA Funny Car competition. She was the first female driver to claim a number-one qualifying position at the Winternationals, the first to win that event outright, and the record-holder for most Funny Car wins by a woman at the time of her retirement. As part of the most prominent family dynasty in drag racing history, she helped sustain John Force Racing's dominance through the 2010s and raised the profile of women in a sport long associated with male competitors.