MXoN Controversy: Long-Running Tradition

Ever since this year's des Nations team was officially announced on Saturday at Southwick, there's been all sorts of controversy over why Mike Alessi didn't earn the MX3 spot on the team. For a while, it was rumored that guys like Villopoto would return from injury to take the last spot. If that had happened, leaving Alessi in the dust wouldn't have been a problem. But since the young up-and-coming Justin Barcia took the spot, everyone has something to say about the situation.

I personally don't see a problem with Barcia taking the last spot. Especially after this weekend's race at Southwick, we saw that Alessi and the MotoConcepts team aren't exactly the most prepared for the sand. Last year, Barcia was impressive at the Wick on the 450. This year, back on the 250, he wasn't really there. But I don't think that was the sand's fault so much as maybe just a lack of concentration on Barcia's part. It wasn't his day and it showed.

Looking back, there's been some strong controversy now and again over who would take what spot, paticularly the last MX3 spot. Vurb Moto took a look back at all of the teams since 2006 and the disagreements that went down in their recruiting. Check out the breakdown HERE.

Who do you think was the best fit for this year's MX3 spot? Did Barcia earn it? Or should Alessi have gotten it?

**edited version where we fixed a correction about Reed being on the team USA**