diff --git a/php-transformer/src/HtmlToBlocks/Patterns/MediaTextPattern.php b/php-transformer/src/HtmlToBlocks/Patterns/MediaTextPattern.php
index 508b6fe7c..2f3b7a080 100644
--- a/php-transformer/src/HtmlToBlocks/Patterns/MediaTextPattern.php
+++ b/php-transformer/src/HtmlToBlocks/Patterns/MediaTextPattern.php
@@ -208,6 +208,23 @@ public function match(
             return null;
         }
 
+        // Out-of-flow media (`position: absolute`/`fixed`) sizes against its
+        // containing block — typically the source media wrapper that sets
+        // `position: relative`, a min-height and overflow clipping — not a grid
+        // track. core/media-text replaces that wrapper with its own figure, so
+        // the media would resolve against a distant ancestor (often the
+        // viewport) and cover the text pane. Keep the authored wrapper through
+        // ordinary flow lowering, mirroring the out-of-flow text-pane gate.
+        if ( $this->declaresUnresolvableGateValue($mediaStyle, array( 'position' )) ) {
+            return null;
+        }
+        $mediaPosition = strtolower($this->normalizedCssValue(
+            (string) ($this->styleDeclarations($mediaStyle)['position'] ?? '')
+        ));
+        if ( in_array($mediaPosition, array( 'absolute', 'fixed' ), true) ) {
+            return null;
+        }
+
         // core/media-text sizes its panes as grid tracks: a percentage media
         // track and the remainder for text. A flex row whose text pane alone
         // grows into the free space beside a fixed-size media pane has no
diff --git a/php-transformer/tests/unit/media-text-pattern.php b/php-transformer/tests/unit/media-text-pattern.php
index 3bc8d0b11..a9b68bd6b 100644
--- a/php-transformer/tests/unit/media-text-pattern.php
+++ b/php-transformer/tests/unit/media-text-pattern.php
@@ -1488,6 +1488,20 @@ static function (string $name, array $attrs, array $innerBlocks, ?DOMElement $so
 $assertTrue(is_array($genuineTwoPaneBlock), 'A genuine in-flow media/text pair still converts to core/media-text.');
 $assertSame('core/heading', $genuineTwoPaneBlock['innerBlocks'][0]['blockName'] ?? null, 'Genuine two-pane text side keeps its heading identity.');
 
+// Out-of-flow media sizes against its source wrapper (the containing block),
+// not a media-text grid track. Replacing that wrapper with media-text's figure
+// lets the image resolve against the viewport, so the pattern declines and the
+// authored wrapper survives with its stylesheet positioning.
+$positionedMediaHtml = '<style>.hero{display:grid;grid-template-columns:1.35fr 1fr}.hero-media{position:relative;min-height:560px;overflow:hidden}.hero-media img{width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;position:absolute}</style>'
+    . '<section class="hero"><div class="hero-text"><h1>Heading</h1><p>Copy beside a cover image.</p></div>'
+    . '<div class="hero-media"><img src="photo.jpg" alt="Photo"></div></section>';
+$positionedMediaResult = $transformHtml($positionedMediaHtml);
+$assertNull($collectMediaText($positionedMediaResult['blocks'] ?? array()), 'Absolutely positioned media keeps its source wrapper instead of lowering to core/media-text.');
+$fixedMediaResult = $transformHtml(str_replace('position:absolute}', 'position:fixed}', $positionedMediaHtml));
+$assertNull($collectMediaText($fixedMediaResult['blocks'] ?? array()), 'Fixed-position media also declines core/media-text.');
+$inFlowMediaResult = $transformHtml(str_replace(';position:absolute}', '}', $positionedMediaHtml));
+$assertTrue(is_array($collectMediaText($inFlowMediaResult['blocks'] ?? array())), 'In-flow media in the same layout still lowers to core/media-text.');
+
 if ( 0 === $failures ) {
     echo "media text pattern ok\n";
 }