Graham Rahal, following in the path laid down by his father, is sitting eighth in the points standings during his sophomore season on the IndyCar Series, which arrives in Sonoma this weekend.
“I think we ought to be fairly good there. Our performance on road courses has been strong this season,” said Rahal, who competed primarily on road and street courses in the Champ Car World Series before the unification of the two American open-wheel racing series at the end of the 2007 season.
“Certainly I’ve been trying to create my own legacy. ... I’m closer than before, but that’s the way it always is until you become a champion,” Graham said.
“Having the famous name, being compared to your father, could get on your nerves, but it’s always gonna be there. It will always be a part of you,” he said. “It helps coming up through the ranks, but it also hurts you in many more ways. It adds pressure as far as needing to perform.”
Graham Rahal’s IndyCar debut was a smashing success after winning his first race in 2008 on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla. He became the youngest IndyCar winner at 19 years, 93 days, supplanting Marco Andretti.
Rahal’s arrival on the scene, however, created a natural rivalry between the two young stars, recalling the legendary battles between their fathers, Bobby Rahal and Michael Andretti.
“It’s a competition at all times. Marco and I don’t address it too much, but it’s there. I always want to beat him,” Rahal said. “It’s the battle of the great American racing families. No one can say it’s not. I enjoy the competition… That’s why I do what I do.”
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