First, I'm going to move this thread to the Windows forum. This is the business applications software forum.
Second, I'm not Windows-illiterate, so I'll tell you that I don't believe you'll have any problems formatting and going with Windows 98. I'd probably do the same thing myself.
However, it *might* not recognize your hardware. Prior to doing anything, get thyself online and go to the sites of your hardware manufacturers and get yourself the drivers of your hardware components for Windows 98 OS. Put them in a safe place. Then, you'll probably be able to load it all using generic drivers from Win98, then reinstall your hardware with the 98 drivers you downloaded. Hardware may be new, but the companies should still provide drivers in case people install that piece on a 98 PC. I'm sure you understand.
I'm also sure other people will have links to non-manufacturer driver download sites where you might obtain those drivers you need. They'll also tell you any other precautions you should take, like making a Win XP bootdisk first.
Good luck with it!