Your right, if a driver had the ability to lock things up so be it. They all went through dry spells. PLUS when it wasn’t decided early, it made for terrific races and anticipation week to week. As far as the remaining races, they could always raise the purse structure to draw both crowds and teams...gawd only knows NASCAR rakes it in.....
Its certainly changed over the years. I remember one of the Allison brothers talking about sitting on the wall watching the last 11 laps of the race he won. I personally like closer finishes but it does display the fact that NASCAR used to be a game of seeking advantages.
In that case I believe Allison’s team had done something to pack something like 2 extra gallons of fuel into the car and managed to skip some 2 extra pit stops. He wasn’t penalized because there was no rule against it but it wasn’t long before there was a rule.
I understand the safety reasoning but I hate pit road speed limits too. (at least under green flags)