He bobbled away, caught the field and paced roughly at times before making good ground into third but while his performance would have been satisfying from any normal pacer, what it did was show the gap between him and Lazarus.
The latter is the complete package and will draw the front line in the NZ Cup while Heaven Rocks will start from the unruly which almost guarantees he will settle close to last even on his best behaviour.
For all his ability, it is getting harder and harder to make a case for Heaven Rocks giving Lazarus a start and a beating in the Cup, especially as the champ gets fitter and returns to the 3200m distance he loves.
The TAB bookies have Lazarus at $1.70 to defend his title and while hardly enticing 21 days from the race, serious dangers are in short supply.
Lazarus is likely to go to the Kaikoura Cup next Monday while Heaven Rocks and Dream About Me could race at Addington on November 3 as their final Cup build-up.
Lazarus might meet Titan Banner at Kaikoura which will give a good indication of where the latter sits in the pecking order.
Unless Titan Banner can at least push Lazarus at Kaikoura, the NZ Cup looks a Purdon-Rasmussen benefit but there is one shining light of competitiveness with Sydney trainer Kevin Pizzuto suggesting last season's Cup runner-up Tiger Tara could now make a surprise trip to Addington.
That would add depth and Australian interest to the race which lost another entry yesterday with Cash N Flow sidelined with a minor setback.
While Lazarus was all class in the Flying Stakes, Great Things Happen continued his steep improvement curve in the Trotters Flying Mile.
He backed up an enormous comeback second at Addington last start by bullying his way to the lead early yesterday and easily holding off a huge late finish from Habibti Ivy.
The performances suggested they are two of the trotters to beat in the Dominion during Cup week, with Great Things Happen now favourite in front of Bordeaux, who was allowed to miss yesterday's race.
While only fifth, Stent was solid in his first race start for 21 months.