It's possible.
For me, I thought that was Madara noticing the wood clone Hashirama set up. I remember Madara says he was the only one who could tell the difference with Mokuton clones but then we see he gets "fooled" by one. Makes no sense. I think Madara notices the clone, he realizes that he doesn't have the stamina to win, and while fighting, he takes a precaution (No idea what that precaution could be) that would let him survive the final blow so that he could live on after realizing he couldn't win the fight with "you've won this battle but I'll win the war" kind of mindset.