Formula One Stops Engine Development

In the most ridiculous news I've ever heard of a "sport", Formula 1 today announced that they're banning engine development for 10 (yes ten) years. I was so in shock, I actually looked at my little calendar on the computer to make sure that I hadn't fell into a deep sleep and woke up on April 1st.

Now, if there was a sport such as running, where someone told me I didn't have to train for 10 years and I could still compete (and be competitive) that sounds great to me. But cars? You've got to be kidding. 10 years is a long time, and given that some manufacturers use Formula 1 to test out new technology that gets fed back into their road cars further down the line - does this mean there's be no more engine improvements in passenger cars in 5 or 10 years time. And what happens if you're the team who didn't quite get the best engine sorted out before the deadline, and you're guaranteed to spend the next 10 years slightly worse off than the rest of the teams - wouldn't you just throw in the towel before you wasted any more money?

I may be slightly over-reacting here, but it's a bit ridiculous - I think F1 has got so far up it's own backside that it's forgot what makes a good racing series.