Newly crowned Around the Island Race champion Tonka Simpson is on the move.The 26-year-old powerboat pilot intends to move up from the FB class next year to test himself at a higher level.“For the last three years I have learned the ropes of racing and got the hang of things and now I want to work my way up to a bigger class,” he said. “I want to test myself at a higher level.“It’s always nice to graduate and besides that, in a small boat you get bruised and I’m really hurting right now. I’m not sure which class I will move up to yet. But the first step is to sell the boat which is already up for sale and then make my decision after.”Simpson bought his Phantom four years ago and invested a lot of time and money in the boat to bring it up to par.“I invested about 35-40 thousand dollars and hundreds of hours in the boat,” he said. “As as a mechanic I built the boat from scratch and made it what it is, so naturally I developed a bond with it.“I made that boat what it is but now I want to move to a bigger boat and make something better. It’s a beautiful boat and whoever buys it will have a perfectly working boat and will be happy with it. I’ve had three people ask about buying the boat already.”Simpson won Sunday’s circumnavigation around the Island in 47 minutes and ten seconds accompanied by brother crew Stacey.He said the reality of winning the race is just starting to really sink in.“It’s a good feeling to win the race especially after watching it as a kid and then finally getting the chance to do it,” he said.Making the achievement all the more special was Simpson’s proud parents Stacey and Patricia who were at Ferry Reach to cheer their sons on to victory.“It was a great feeling to have our parents there cheering us on,” he said. “It was a very memorable occasion and one I will long cherish.”Sunday’s race was co-pilot Stacey’s first trip around the rock and according to his brother the former passed the test with flying colours.Simpson believes that his elder brother has a bright future in the sport and hopes he will continue to crew for him moving forward.“Stacey certainly has the potential,” he said. “I would like to see him stay in the cockpit with me and there’s a strong possibility he will.“We just have to wait and see how things go from here. Once the boat is sold we will decide what to get next.”