Ali's Daughter Counted Out of Rumble in Jungle Ii

A boxing bout involving the daughter of Muhammad Ali and billed as a sequel to the boxer's legendary 1974 Rumble in the Jungle has collapsed amid claims of fraud and incompetence against the promoter.

Laila Ali, 28, a world super-middleweight champion, packed her bags and flew back to the US on Tuesday night after it emerged that promoters would not be able to pay her $522,000 (£283,000) fee.

She had been was due to fight Gwendolyn O'Neil at Cape Town's convention centre on August 5 in a WBC title bout dubbed the female equivalent of her father's celebrated 1974 comeback fight against George Foreman in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire.

Ms Ali, who made her debut in 1999, was the favourite against the challenger, a 36-year-old mother of five from Guyana.

But from the moment Ms Ali arrived a week ago it was rumoured the South African promoters were overstretched and could not meet their obligations.

Her fears were confirmed when a local newspaper said a letter from Sta-Trade Promotions used a forged signature from the sports minister, Makhenkesi Stofile, in an apparent bid to raise funds. The minister's spokesman said the forgery was illegal and merited an investigation.

Ms Ali's manager, Damon Bingham, said on Tuesday the bout had been cancelled and he and his fighter would be leaving immediately.

The owner of Sta-Trade Promotions, Joe Manyathi, accepted blame but said he was not fully responsible: "The whole world will look at South Africa with a bad eye. I am apologetic."

The promoter said an unnamed partner caused the collapse. "He committed himself to footing the bill but pulled out on Tuesday," he said.

Even before this week's fiasco, Mr Manyathi had a controversial reputation for making hollow promises about staging big fights in South Africa, including a Mike Tyson v Lennox Lewis clash which did not materialise.

Boxing South Africa, the national regulator, once took away his licence over an unpaid debt but later restored it. The body's relationship with Mr Manyathi is now under scrutiny.

A rival promoter, Rodney Berman, told the Johannesburg Star that the affair had damaged the country's reputation. "This reflects very badly on South Africa - and not just boxing - and is pathetic in light of the spotlight being on this country ahead of the 2010 soccer World Cup."