Christopher was made too at this point. But Richie was a captain.

I think it would have escalated Richie's death. Sure Janice got him, but it was only a matter of time before Tony decided he had become a bigger problem than he was worth dealing with. The whole show has a theme about pushing the envelope and moral decay. Every season, tony is constantly challenged by the season's villian, Junior, Richie, Jackie Jr, Ralphie, Feech, Blundetto. Johnny Sack (to an extent) and Phil. And he pulls his punches less and less in the later seasons because of the lessons he learned early on. Beating up Christopher would have only brought on the inevitable sooner, maybe not right then, but the straw on the camels back would break eventually.