Porsche->ke1 secured the manufacturers' title for the 2015 FIA World Endurance Championship following its success at the 6 Hours of Shanghai in China this weekend. This was Porsche's fifth consecutive win in 2015 and gave the German team a 70-point lead over Audi,->ke14 meaning the standings will remain the same at the top regardless of what happens in the final round later this month.

The No. 17 Porsche 919 Hybrid driven by Mark Webber, Timo Bernhard, and Brendon Hartley took the checkered flag after six hours of intense racing ahead of teammates Marc Lieb, Romain Dumas, and Neel Jani. The 1-2 finish sealed Porsche's first top-tier endurance championship since 1986.

Webber, Bernhard and Hartley also extended their lead in the drivers’ championship with their fourth consecutive overall win and are now only a race away from clinching that trophy too.

“What this team has done in this short period of time is just incredible,” said Mark Webber. “To come at this level and have the results they have this year -- it’s really hard to produce these type of cars and this type of performance week in week out, it’s an incredible performance.”

Third place went to the No. 7 Audi R18 e-tron quattro of Andre Lotterer, Marcel Fassler, and Benoit Treluyer. The result leaves the Audi Sport Team Joest crew 12 points behind Porsche's leading team, meaning that the drivers' championship will be decided in the last round.

The 2015 FIA World Endurance Championship ends on November 21st with the 6 Hours of Bahrain.

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Why it matters

The Shanghai race marked Porsche's fifth straight victory and fourth one-two finish this season -- a pretty impressive performance when you consider that Stuttgart only joined the series in 2014. Although it won just one race and had a disappointing campaign at Le Mans->ke1591 last year, Porsche made tremendous progress this season and made a spectacular comeback after it lost the first two rounds at Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps. Having clinched both the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the World Championship in 2015, it's safe to say that Porsche has finally regained its former glory.

Speaking of which, this is Porsche's 13th world championship, adding to the 12 trophies it had won between 1964 and 1986. Following this success, the 919 Hybrid joins a select club of championship-winning Porsches that include the 908, 917, 911 Carrera RSR, 956, and 962.

Porsche 919 Hybrid

Read more about the Porsche 919 Hybrid here.