A hybrid Stapelia?

This plant was received as Stapelia hirsuta late November last year as a single stemmed, unrooted cutting. A little over seven months later and the plant finally decided to throw out a flower- well actually it began forming buds early last month but these blasted, maybe due to the sudden swings of temperature. But...

I don't think it is what it's labeled. The corona structure is very different and actually reminds me more of S. gigantea's that S. hirsuta's. The coloration appears halfway between the two species, while the silky trichomes (the hairs) are a lot like S. hirsuta's but somewhat shorter. I'm pretty sure this is a hybrid. In recent years there have been stapeliads masquerading under dubious and/or ambiguous names, probably as a result of cross-pollination in private collections and distributed widely by growers who thought they were dishing out the real thing- the seed parent of this plant should be S. hirsuta, which explains why it's labeled as such. I do not know the exact source of this plant- it may even have been sourced from the wild and turned out to be a natural hybrid.

The coronal structure is more like S. gigantea than S. hirsuta.

When photographed with a sharp light and dark gradient, the trichomes are much more strongly apparent.

The flower is about 8 cm across, with a very faint stench that is noticeable only in the morning. It did fool a couple of flies and a few ants, though.  More buds are currently developing, but are hidden from view by the petals.

I grow this plant over-potted, in a rocky mixture under full sun. Like most of my succulents, this plant is ignored and left on their own devices most of the time. The plants retaliate by sending out olfactorily disrespectful flowers.

As if I mind that.