Kiwis Brendon Hartley and Earl Bamber, along with German teammate Timo Bernhard, were unable to win the World Endurance Championship at Fuji in Japan on Sunday.
The factory Porsche drivers could have secured the title but rivals Toyota took advantage of a weather-shortened race to keep the series alive.
The points leaders only needed to finish ahead of the #8 Toyota in their Porsche 919 to seal the drivers' crown ended up finishing fourth to see their points gap go down to 39 points.
The race was called off early when fog descended onto the track.
The penultimate round of the championship is in Shanghai next month.
