The guys in CC got there by being the most consistent within the microcosm of their region. Nobody "random" qualified. You could make an argument for a few more players from a given region or a couple more qualifying events along the way but would you really want the NRS cup to just exclude you or whoever else from EU simply because your scene doesn't have as many killers or events as the US or Brazil? I mean, you're pretty confident that you can stack up to most US players, right? Do you think its justified you're irrelevant or just some random player because you don't play at WNF or Next Level?
The simple answer is just make the tourney bigger, but they are still working the bugs out even at 16. That said, I don't think anyone can view this as anything other than a success. A ton of money for the players, some very high quality matches with lots of nail biter endings, and a totally free stream with minimal commercial nonsense. I will personally take just about any opportunity to rag on Capcom, but really this was just a win win (win) scenario all around.