MELBOURNE, March 16 (Reuters) - Sebastien Bourdais joined a select group of Formula One drivers to have scored points in their debut race on Sunday, despite stopping short of the chequered flag in Australia.

The Frenchman, four times a Champ Car champion in the United States, pulled over with two laps remaining as smoke billowed from his Toro Rosso's blown Ferrari engine while in fourth place.

Despite the disappointment, his departure left only seven cars still running in the race and assured him of eighth place and a point.

That then turned into two points when Honda's Brazilian Rubens Barrichello was disqualified from sixth.

"Bourdais proved all through the weekend that he was the right choice to put alongside (Germany's Sebastian) Vettel," said Toro Rosso co-owner Gerhard Berger.

"He was a bit unlucky in qualifying but he had a fantastic race, fighting with the best, and he managed to keep his
position even towards the end on old tyres.

"He made no mistakes, reading the race in the right way from beginning to end."

Vettel was the most recent, and 56th, driver to score on his debut as a stand-in for BMW Sauber in the U.S. Grand Prix at Indianapolis last year.

Bourdais now becomes the 57th in a grouping that includes McLaren's race winner Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari's world champion Kimi Raikkonen.

The last Frenchman to score on his debut was Jean Alesi in 1989, following in the footsteps of four times champion Alain Prost in 1980.

Bourdais, who had said before the season-opening race that a point would feel as good as a win considering the team's midfield status, was pleased and disappointed in equal measure after starting in 17th place.

"It's not the first time I've experienced disappointment in racing and it won't be the last," he said.

"At the start I was down the order and running quite heavy and I was struggling a bit. But then I got the hang of
things...to come from almost last to fourth was an excellent start."

(Editing by Rex Gowar)