Rahal was born in Columbus, Ohio, and attended New Albany school systems, graduating in June 2007. He is a noted fan of both Ohio State University athletics and NHL hockey, and enjoys playing golf. He is also a car enthusiast, with a growing collection of Ducati motorcycles.
In 2005, Rahal won the Formula Atlantic class at the SCCA Runoffs and finished fourth in the Star Mazda Series standings. He also raced with A1 Team Lebanon for the final three rounds of the 2005-06 A1 Grand Prix season. In 2006, he moved to a full-time ride in the Champ Car Atlantic Series, winning five races and finishing second in the season standings. He also drove in the Indy Pro Series event on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, finishing second.
In 2007, Rahal participated in the 24 Hours of Daytona, finishing 62nd out of seventy entries, and the 12 Hours of Sebring, finishing sixth in the GT2 class. He then joined Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing in the Champ Car World Series, debuting at the Vegas Grand Prix where he retired after hitting the wall on the first lap. He secured his first Champ Car podium finish in Houston, finishing second in just his third race. He completed his rookie season fifth in points with four podium finishes.
2008 saw Rahal transition to the newly unified IndyCar Series with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. After missing the Gainsco Auto Insurance Indy 300 due to a crash, he won his series debut at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, becoming the youngest person at the time to win a major American open-wheel race at 19 years, 93 days. He finished seventeenth in points, fourth among series rookies.
In 2009, Rahal returned to Newman/Haas/Lanigan, taking over the No. 02 car. He began the season by taking pole position at St. Petersburg, becoming the youngest ever polesitter aged 20 years, 90 days. He finished seventh in the championship with two podium finishes.
During the 2010 season, Rahal drove for four different teams – Sarah Fisher Racing, Rahal Letterman Racing, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, and Newman/Haas Racing – starting twelve races and finishing twentieth in points. At the 2010 Indianapolis 500, driving for his father’s team, he qualified seventh and finished twelfth.
In 2017, Rahal secured a double win at the Detroit Grand Prix, winning both races of the weekend.
Rahal signed with Chip Ganassi Racing for 2011 and 2012. In 2011, he co-drove to victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona alongside Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, and Joey Hand, thirty years after his father won the same race.
From 2013 onwards, Rahal returned to Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. He achieved a second-place finish at the 2013 Long Beach Grand Prix. He broke a six-year winless streak with victories at Auto Club Speedway and Mid-Ohio in 2015, finishing fourth in the championship standings. He won again at Texas Motor Speedway in 2016, with a margin of victory of only .008 of a second. In 2019, he finished eighth in the championship for the fifth-straight year. In 2023, after initially missing the Indianapolis 500 qualifying field, he was chosen as a replacement driver for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, finishing 22nd after being involved in an accident. He subsequently secured pole positions at the IMS Road Course and Portland, and earned his first podium in years.
Rahal opened Graham Rahal Performance (GRP) in May 2017, which has grown from an automotive tuning and parts shop to include exotic car sales. He is also a junior partner with Bobby Rahal Automotive Group, a network of car dealerships in western and central Pennsylvania.
Rahal is married to Courtney Force, daughter of NHRA drag racing champion John Force. They have one daughter, Harlan Ann Rahal, born in November 2020. Rahal started the Graham Rahal Foundation in 2009 to support Alex's Lemonade Stand for Childhood Cancer and The Association of Hole in the Wall Camps, which was later renamed to Graham & Courtney Rahal Foundation (GCRF) in 2019, supporting Turns for Troops and Colorado State University's One Cure.
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